The Veldt
by BeaconMineshaftII
Summary: Aline Herveaux has always been something of a misfit, even in a community of werewolves. Her adoptive family would rather die than betray the secrets she keeps. But all it takes is an independent streak and a strange two-sided attraction to vampires to turn the young woman's life upside down for better...or worse? **Alternate Universe!**
1. Arrival

Trouble seems to follow me like the plague. I blame it on the fact that I've been raised, for the most part, within a rather barbaric society. At least it was claimed to be barbaric according to the societal standards set by humans and human kind alike. There are those of us that will argue and argue until we're blue in the face or, more likely, until time ends that our society is the correct one. I'm not one of those—but we definitely have them. Perhaps two of them for every one person like me. And a mindset like mine is few and far between. But our society is rather small. There are, naturally, more of our kind scattered about. But we keep to ourselves unless there are dire circumstances that require us to stand shoulder to shoulder. Elitist snobs are what I like to call us. That's all that we really are.

And by us I mean werewolves. Granted, I'm not a full-blooded werewolf. But only two other people in my pack know about that. And those two people are my family whether we share blood or not. We don't, but it's never made a difference to us. I even took on their surname after Jackson Herveaux took me in. Actually, he renamed me as well. I don't remember my original name; neither does he. He was told that it would be better if I were raised as if I were one of his own. If it had been any other were, I probably would have had a much different life. But Jackson has a heart of solid gold. A trait which he instilled in Alcide, his son and my brother.

But it is the fact that I am not full-blooded that has brought us here before an acquaintance of my father's. A vampire sheriff acquaintance, to be more precise. Normally such meetings were made more public so that the rest of our pack was aware of the circumstances. But because they involved a secret we kept hidden from them for the entirety of my twenty-one-years-of-life, Dad thought it was wise that nobody outside of our family knew. And that is why the three of us stood in Sheriff Eric Northman's office. This vampire was studying my father with ice cold blue eyes over his clasped hands.

"You want me to watch your daughter and make sure that no harm comes to her," Eric said slowly, his eyebrows furrowed. "Why?"

"I think it would be wise if we do not disclose that information," my father replied smoothly. Eric frowned.

"I reject your imposed favor."

"You owe me, Northman," Jackson growled. I placed my hand on his arm comfortingly, shaking my head lightly. Alcide's arm went around my waist protectively.

"I do," Eric acknowledged, "but I believe that you're asking more than you're entitled to."

"I am," my father admitted. "But secrecy is of the utmost importance. It's why I'm asking you for help."

"Let me understand this," Eric mused. "You wish for me to take in your daughter and lodge her for an interminable amount of time. And on top of that, you would also like my guarantee of her protection so long as she is in my watch. Correct?"

"Yes."

"But I am not allowed to know _why_ I am putting myself and my men at risk?"

"Dad," I broke their squabble. "I think we can tell him." Dad turned on me faster than I had ever seen, panic lining his face. I smiled gently. "He won't let me stay there unless he's given some information." My father stared me down, knowing full well that I had just used my fae powers to read his mind. "My ex-boyfriend—perhaps you've heard of him. His death was rather prominent for the last few weeks. His name was Marc."

"As in the vampire?" The shock was visible on the ancient vampire's face. I nodded. "I did not realize that you were that much of a friend to vampires."

"More so than I believe my brother and father enjoy," I chuckled lightly. "Recently, he was tortured until the true death." That thought still brought a wince of pain to my face. But he had turned out to be a traitorous little prick, I reminded myself sternly. "He was captured by another vampire's minions to discover why, exactly, he was so protective of me. That information was divulged." I frowned. "Which means that vampires are now after my head." Or blood.

"What makes you so special? You aren't even full-blooded—"

"Watch your mouth, vampire," Alcide threatened, a low growl in the back of his throat. I patted his arm in thanks.

"I am half fae."

"You're _what_?"

"I am half fae," I repeated, a smirk forming on my face.

"I think I'll need a taste test to prove this," he smirked. Alcide and Dad went to retaliate but, to their surprise, I simply laughed. He was only about a quarter serious about that.

"He's just being a prick," I chuckled. "He's not serious."

"Telepath?"

"Among other things."

"If I accept this," he turned his eyes to my father, "you are aware that this will put you into my debt again?"

"I am," my father grunted. I swear, even the most well-mannered were is only a rung above caveman on the social skills ladder.

To me: "What is your name?"

"Aline Herveaux."

"Welcome to Area Five, Miss Herveaux," he smirked at me. He was being polite and politically correct for the sake of my father. I returned his smirk, hiding my laugh.

"Thank you, Sheriff Northman."

It was a few hours later, after everything had been settled between my father and Eric, that we were driving to Eric's home. Well, one of them. He claimed that this was his largest home as well as his best staffed. This included a security force. I wasn't very surprised to hear that—but I was surprised to find that most of his staff were human.

"Humans?" Alcide mused aloud as we pulled into the driveway. He was wondering if they were glamored. They weren't.

"No," I shook my head. "They're paid handsomely and they like Eric."

"First name basis now?"

I shot him a look. "That's why I don't date werewolves. Too much damn pride. Vampires are just cocky—and snarky. That I can handle. I can't handle another ego as large as mine." I shook my head. "Anyway, I only did that for dad. I'm not going to walk around this man's house calling him Sheriff Northman until this whole dilemma is over."

Before he could reply to me, I was out of his truck and getting my bags from the back hub. My father, having ridden over with Eric, was currently looking over the staff. Most of the security guards were shifters of some kind. I couldn't tell what but their brain patterns told me that they were, indeed, two-natured like myself and Alcide.

As we carried over my bags, Jackson walked over to us. "Alcide and I will be back during the full moon to take you out for a run." God, I felt like a house pet at that. Which he must have noticed from my scowl. "I don't mean it like that, Ali. But we can't have you running around in wolf form around here."

"We're going to pass you off as human," Eric explained with a look at my father. "That means you won't be able to shift. Aside from the stench of them on you," he made a motion to my brother and father, "I can't smell anything on you. You smell human."

"I mask my scent, usually," I admitted. "It makes it easier." And the rest of the pack was too dumb to honestly notice that I didn't have my own scent. The only time they took notice was when I was in my wolf form.

"Understandably. But I'll be passing you off as my human companion."

"Which does _not_ bind you to him in any way," Dad shot a dark look at Eric, who simply shrugged with a smirk. I intrigued him and he thought I was attractive but he had a preconceived notion that werewolves were all the same to a point. He was somewhat right about that. But I didn't have an interest in him. He seemed like the type I would befriend into a brother-type. That, however, was information I would keep to myself. It would be fun to keep that little piece of information out at my disposal to piss off my brother or my father if need be.

The two must have noticed that mischievous look cross my face because they traded glances silently. They were worried before they had even pulled out of the driveway.

"Goodbye, princess, I'll see you in a few weeks," Dad finally said as he planted a kiss on my temple and walked toward Alcide's truck. It was difficult for him to leave me in a man's house—a vampire, no less. Especially Eric Northman.

"Little Optimist," Alcide addressed me. "I want you to remember that not all vampires are as kind as you want them to be. They aren't all Marc." Or maybe they are, he added silently in thought. That twinge pulled at my chest. He must have noticed because he locked his mind down completely, an apologetic look in his eyes. "I don't want you to end up as some trophy in some vampire's collection of oddities." I raised my eyebrows at the word 'oddities.'

"Don't worry," Eric interjected. "I do not plan on telling the Queen that she is here. I will also keep her away from Compton. He can't seem to keep anything to himself as of late." The vampire scowled. Obviously the two did not get along. Alcide nodded, the answer satisfying him.

"I'm going to be in Bon Temps for a construction project this week," he informed me seriously. "I'll be dropping in to check on you. Hopefully you can manage to stay out of trouble until then." I chuckled, a grin spreading across my face. He shook his head, putting a kiss on my forehead and then sauntering over to his truck. I watched them leave from the porch, waving until they were out of sight. Though I had been without them before, I couldn't help but feel lonely at their leave. I was going to miss them something awful.

"Come, I'll show you to your room," Eric interrupted. His servants snatched up my bags before I could and walked ahead of us. I followed them upstairs, admiring the décor. You most certainly could tell that Eric was a former Viking. Everything was so ornate. Mentally I noted things I wanted to examine more as we progressed down the hallway. The servants doubled back and passed us just as we got to the doors. They were firmly drawn shut, as seemed to be the custom in Eric's abode. "If you do not like the décor, we can always redecorate it to your liking. Jackson wants to make sure that you're as comfortable as you can be."

I nodded, shifting nervously from foot to foot. He opened the doors, revealing a room that contained black, modern-style furniture. It was an odd, but nice, contrast to the early (and I mean pre-dating Viking era early) European feel to the room. I studied it eagerly.

When I did not protest the decorations, he continued: "Your father informed me that you enjoy being outside. So I have given you the second master bedroom. There is a balcony," he motioned beside the bed, "a private bath," a gesture to the other side of the room, "and a walk-in closet," a gesture to the wall we were closest to. When I was still silent, he wondered if he had misread my admiration. "If you don't like the decorations, you can stay in another room until they are altered to your tastes—"

"I'll do no such thing," I scolded. "I've always dreamed of living somewhere like this." I examined a piece of pottery. "This is very early European," I confirmed. He nodded. "Probably somewhere around the first century—the coast of Gaul before it was overtaken by Romans." He stared, slack-jawed, in surprise at me. "Sorry, did I get it wrong?"

"No," he shook his head, snapping himself back into composure. He tried to articulate a sentence for a few seconds before settling on: "how?"

"I have a degree in interior design," I smiled lightly. "And art history. A minor in business management." He frowned in confusion. "Dad wanted me to have some part in Herveaux Constructing," I shrugged. "I'm not much for construction, but I've always had a little bit of, uh, more distinguished tastes than the rest of the werewolves. That and I honestly enjoy learning." I was on the outs with a lot of weres for that in our childhood. Though the pain of those memories threatened to surface, I pushed them away. "These are beautiful pieces," I complimented.

"I'm glad you like them. A friend of mine decorated this room. It is usually his when he visits. But I'm sure that he wouldn't mind sharing it with you." I gave him a strange look, wondering if he intended that double meaning. "I don't mean like that. I would," he gave me a crooked grin, "but he wouldn't. He's too much of a gentleman."

Before I could make a remark, he turned and left me to my lonesome. I stared after him for a few seconds before looking outside. There were a few hours of night left. As my father probably knew that I would, I decided to spend those remaining hours on the balcony, enjoying the quiet calm of Louisiana. It was much different than Jackson, I noted. But I still missed home. This would take some getting used to.


	2. Revelations Part 1

Soon a few days had passed. Alcide stopped in to visit like he had promised. Then those days stretched into weeks. The weeks into months. And, by the third month, I was bored enough to gamble with my life and ask something of my vampire host. I wanted to be employed somewhere. Daylight had even given me time to research this. There was a quaint little bar and grill in Bon Temps that was hiring servers. It was socially beneath me to be a waitress, my father had always insisted, but I didn't think I would mind it.

Eric had seen no reason not to allow me to work there. His chief of security would drive me there and back, hanging around the diner for my shift as if he were a patron. Though he honestly couldn't understand _why _I wanted to dirty my hands by actually working. (Apparently Eric knew the owner of Merlotte's. I couldn't yet tell if that was good or bad for me. From the way that Eric had chuckled, however, I was going to assume the latter until I was proven otherwise. Though he honestly does have a kind heart, he tends to hide it from people rather well. Most of them only see him as an egotistical jerk. Egotistical, yes. Jerk, not so much. That's more of a defense mechanism from what I've observed.)

This, however, brings me to the current times. My father's truck had pulled up into the driveway, a very furious were making his way up the front steps two at a time. I opened the door before he had a chance to knock on it so hard that he put a hole in the custom door. His eyes would have caught me on fire if he had been blessed with that power. I took the time to count my stars that he hadn't been. "Hey Dad," I grinned brightly. "What's up?"

"You want to do _what_ because _why_?" he asked, ignoring my question. I bit my lip.

"I want to work at Merlotte's," I began slowly, "because I'm bored out of my mind." I had catalogued everything in the house in my own personal database. I'm something of a collector of information, I suppose. Especially when it comes to things of designing or artistic nature.

"I pay Eric enough so that you _don't_ have to work. And he himself has assured me that he's taken enough of a liking to you that he would cover the expenses I wouldn't." It took a lot of self restraint for my father to admit that without popping a gasket. I would have to applaud him for that several years down the road, I noted.

"Honestly, I'm just bored. I could sit at home maxing out both of your credit cards and still not have enough to occupy me," I reminded him. "I'm a werewolf _and_ a faery. I need to be more occupied than _this_. At least I did you both the courtesy of asking first. I could have very well just gone and done it on my own." He turned this thought over in his mind, realizing that I was right.

"How reliable is Eric's staff?"

"Very. More so than most of our pack."

"The head of his security—Michael?" I nodded. "He's going to accompany you the entire time?" Another nod. "And Eric knows Sam Merlotte?" Nod. "You aren't going to pull a crazy stint and run off while you're supposed to be working?"

"No," I shook my head. "Geez, Dad, put me on lock down any more and I might die of boredom before any of those nut jobs can get to me." I crossed my arms in a huff, looking up at him defiantly. He shook his head, a grin spreading across his face.

"I don't care what anybody says. Sometimes, you're all were."

After that, his visit was pleasant and he left just before it was dark out. When Eric rose and came into the living room, I informed him that my father had said it was alright. He nodded and went to make a phone call to this Sam Merlotte guy. It was a few minutes before he returned, but he said that Sam was desperate enough for staff to skip the interview and give me a test run. I would start next week. "My friend is coming to stay here a few weeks," Eric told me, half-watching the repeat of an Ancient Egyptian segment on the History Channel. I took my eyes away from the screen to give him my full attention.

"The one whose room I stole?"

Eric nodded. "He said he will stay in another room," he held up a hand when I went to protest, "and that you should not worry yourself about it. He simply wanted you to know because you were staying here with me. It would be improper." I stared at him, waiting for him to continue. There was obviously something he wanted to say. He studied me. "You are unlike most women I know. Most of them don't know when to shut the hell up," he chuckled in amusement. "But getting you to talk is tedious work. Unless it is about artifacts or something." Another chuckle.

"What's his name?" I asked, a smile gracing my lips.

"His name is Godric," a pause, "and he is my maker." My eyebrows rose up at this revelation.

"Your maker?" He nodded at my question. "So I get to meet the man that carved out the mighty Eric Northman." Eric laughed.

"He is different from what you are probably imagining."

"We'll just have to see about that, won't we?"

And with that the conversation was dropped. Eventually, Eric got bored of my television watching habits and went to work. When the doorbell rang, I was rather startled and confused. A glance at Michael confirmed that whoever it was was not a threat to me. So I did exactly what my father would have hated and opened the door. A vampire stood there, his gaze startled when he noticed me.

A smile crept upon my face, catching sight of the tattoo peaking out from the collar of his shirt. "You must be Godric," I assumed. "I'm Aline."

"It is nice to meet you," he smiled kindly. I stepped aside to allow him entrance. "Eric is not here?"

"He went to work. The History Channel bores him after a few hours," I chuckled. "I'm sorry I took your room." Well, in my defense, Eric had given it to me with little context as to who it belonged to. I wondered exactly how far indebted my father was to the vampire now.

"It is not a problem," Godric assured me. "Eric said that you are familiar with early European décor?"

"As much as I can be," I admitted. "My father doesn't do a lot of overly artistic projects." I shrugged. "So my knowledge on it is fairly limited to what I can discover in my free time. I must admit that it's expanded quite a bit since I've been here, though. You both have exceptional taste."

"I am glad that you think so. My nest mates in Dallas are not as appreciative as you are." I excused myself to return to the documentary on TV, surprised when Godric followed me. He seemed to be at a loss of what to do until Eric came back.

"You do not mind my company, do you?"

"No, of course not," I grinned. "You probably have some embarrassing dirt on Eric that I could use for leverage some day."

"I assure you that I have no embarrassing dirt," Eric said from behind me. I snickered to myself, shooting him a wink. He smirked, shaking his head. The two men began speaking in a language I didn't recognize (that I subsequently tuned out). It was quite some time before Eric waved his hand in front of my face. I stopped my fixation with Greek pottery and looked up at him with wide, innocent blue eyes. Tuning them out had been more effective than I realized by the looks on their faces.

"Er, sorry," I smiled sheepishly. "I'm good at tuning things out."

"We are bothering you?" Godric asked politely.

"Wha—oh, no! I just thought that you might want some privacy so I stopped listening to you."

"Perhaps you _are_ like most women," Eric smirked at me. I stuck my tongue out at him childishly. "I was asking you if it would be alright if Godric were to accompany you along with Michael."

"Something tells me that you're telling me more than asking me."

"You're smarter than I give you credit for." I glanced at Godric.

"Have you told him the severity of the situation?"

"That is not my information to divulge," Eric replied seriously. "That is up to your discretion." I studied the ancient vampire, reaching out with my mind. He did not have any ill will for me. Simply a curiosity of me and why Eric had decided to take on a human companion. My lips curved upward into an amused smile.

"I'm a werewolf," I informed Godric. "Half, actually. My other heritage is faery." He looked genuinely astonished.

"You smell like neither."

"I can mask my scent." I then went into detail about why exactly I was hanging around Eric's house.

"So you are not his mate?"

"No," I laughed. "Eric would be more of a brother than a mate," I admitted honestly. "And he's too tall."

Eric looked at me as if I had gone insane. "I'm too tall?"

"Hey, I'm kind of vertically challenged. I don't want to have to climb my mate—though that could be fun," I admitted with a devious smirk. I shook out my long brown hair. "But, yes, you're too tall."

"Most women complain that I'm too arrogant."

"For show."

"I'm a prick."

"Playful."

"Seriously, I'm too _tall_ is your complaint?"

"What? You want me to be falling over myself in love with you?"

"He's not used to women not falling for his oddly loveable charm," Godric mused. I stared between the two of them and, without being able to help it, began laughing.

"I'm sorry," I wiped tears from my eyes. "It just amazes me how little people assume about me." I subdued my laughing to a chuckle and then to an amused smile. "I don't even get like that when I am actually dating someone. I liked Marc because he was, for the most part, withdrawn. I like breathing room. So did he." I made it sound like a business deal, I noted.

"You _are_ peculiar," Eric noted again.

"When you have Alcide as a brother and Jackson as a father, it's easy to want space. It's why I got in so much trouble when I was in high school. Just to piss Daddy off." Eric opened his mouth but I cut him off. "My main point: I am not his mate, I have no desire to be his mate. He has become something of a brother to me these past three months."

"You can be as annoying as what my sisters were," he mused. I gave him a cheeky grin before pinching his cheek.

"And, now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go upstairs and read." I shoved the remote in Eric's hands before bounding up the stairs beside Godric, who looked both amused and perplexed at what had just transpired. I barely stifled my snicker of amusement. Ha. Take that big bad Eric's reputation!

I woke up the next day with the unmistakable urge to go shopping. I hadn't asked Eric the night before—but I hadn't wanted to go shopping the night before, either. That meant I had to beg Michael to take me out with the risk of Eric getting angry about it. Something tells me that I can persuade Michael into it. Even if I have to glamour him into it. My summer wardrobe was distinctly lacking this year since I had been in lock down.

It did not take me very long to convince Michael to accompany me. In fact, he held little opposition to the manner. "Mr. Northman tells me to go where you go. He'd probably only be angry with you," he replied with a shrug. I grinned at the unknown shifter.

"Trust me, Eric's always angry about something. I'm sure someone else will come along and piss him off more than me. Besides, vampires are the ones after me. They're all dead to the world right now." With that settled, I dragged the head of security out to the local mall. Both my father and Eric had given me credit cards, so I didn't have to worry about that. Alcide had offered, too, but I had refused to take his. If anything I would spend my father's money first. But Alcide's I refused to touch. His fiancée, Debbie, did enough of that.

To say that I didn't like her would be the understatement of the century. If I was given the chance, I would surrender whatever fae nature I had that kept me from doing the proper were thing and ripping her throat out. But Alcide would probably never forgive me. I don't think Jackson would care either way. After his wife died when Alcide and I were young, he's come to terms with the fact that shit happens. Now that doesn't mean he won't try and stop it, of course. It just means that he knows there are some things he can't control. A lesson learned that helped him sleep at night. Something Alcide and I were grateful for. It's hard to watch someone you love so much self-destruct themselves and not be able to do anything about it.

To say that Michael was less than thrilled about the prospect of spending several hours in overly priced department stores was an understatement to say the least. If he hadn't been paid handsomely to answer to Eric's every beckoned call, he probably would have dropped me off and went back home until I was done. But he had been given direct orders to watch me. That order extended to making sure that I wasn't left alone during recreational activities such as shopping.

I was kind enough in the fact that I tried to look through everything as quickly as possible. But being a werewolf-raised-woman had taught me that I not only needed to look my best but that I also needed to be sure that I wasn't being screwed over in the pricing of garments. We have a very odd culture, I mused as I nimbly went through the rack. Somewhere along the way, Michael had made the mistake of offering to hold stuff for me while I looked. This ended up in him turning into some sort of glorified coat rack for all of the hangers I was throwing at him.

Eventually, I had tried everything on and paid for the items with my father's card. On the way home I made Michael stop at an antique shop that piqued my interest. To my surprise he was less reluctant about this shop. I began combing over the shop, not entirely sure I was looking for something but knowing that something had pulled me to this place. It was only when I stumbled across a room on the third floor that I understood. A grin crossed my face at my discoveries.

The room was rather unkempt due to the fact that the owners probably thought the items in there were simply junk. But, to people such as myself, this was a goldmine. I immediately crouched over a large, ceremonial sword. The markings on it signified that it had been produced sometime in the first century. With a little cleaning, it would be a beautiful piece. I handed it to Michael, telling him not to drop it. Rifling through the collection, I found a sword from Eric's era. It was not as ornate as the first century sword—but this was an authentic sword that had seen battle before.

I turned it over in my hands, utterly fascinated, before handing that to Michael as well. Just as I was about to leave, a small Egyptian-style statue of the goddess Bastet caught my eye. Now, by all means, I should have a natural opposition to cats. But I've always loved them. And they've always liked me. A fact that has always terrified my father. It was a sure sign that I wasn't full-blooded. And it proved that I took after my were nature less than my father was inclined to admit. But it was the only side that I openly claimed.

The completetion of my purchase meant that we could finally go home. Night had just begun to fall when Michael and I walked into the house. He helped me carry the everything up to my room. By the time I had everything put away, the darkness had completely fallen around us. I stashed the swords in the back of my closet to clean tomorrow. Vaguely wondering if they would like them, I went downstairs to the kitchen.

Eric was there drinking a True Blood with a scowl on his face. He looked at it peculiarly—almost as if it would retaliate and slap him or something. The sight of this caused me to stop and stare at him. Then a grin spread across my face. And after that I simply began laughing. The Viking turned to me, the scowl on his face deepening.

"This tastes like shit," he surmised.

"I wouldn't know," I laughed. "But the look on your face says everything." Eric shot me a glare, which I ignored. Instead, I began making myself a sandwich.

"You're eating late tonight," he observed.

"I was out with Michael earlier and didn't bother to stop to get something to eat."

"You were what?"

"I made Michael go shopping with me. I needed more clothes."

"You women and your clothes," he muttered.

"Hey, don't even try that, mister," I jabbed my peanut butter coated knife in his general direction. "I've _seen _your closet."

"She has a point, Eric," Godric mused from the doorway.

"Besides, Dad insists that I fully looked the part of a were woman," I shrugged. "He keeps an eye on how much I spend on clothes. If I didn't get some for summer soon, he probably would have showed up with some." I cringed at the last time he had purchased me clothes. They had nearly all been pastel-colored skirt suits and the like. I shook my head. "That was rather unpleasant the last time that happened. I'd much rather just go and get my own things."

"I was unaware that werewolves were so concerned about that," Eric admitted.

I nodded. "You wouldn't think it to look at our men. But the women are rarely found in anything that costs less than seventy-five dollars." I shrugged. "It's just how we do things, I guess. At least the weres that are distinguished. We have our trash, just like everybody else. But packs like mine try to smooth over those rough edges just by polishing ours more." I spared a small smile up at Eric. "The supernatural are all vain in one way or another."

"I'm not sure if I'm complimented or insulted by you most of the time."

"Most of the time, I'm just observing. But I like you. So I wouldn't go out of my way to actually insult you." Both vampires looked at me curiously. "What?"

"It's just so unusual for someone of your kind to admit a friendship with one of our own," Godric addressed lightly before smiling. "But I think it is a sign that our races may one day live peacefully among one another."

"I certainly hope so." I smiled in return. "I'm not sure I'll live to see that but it would still be nice for coexistence in its entirety someday."

"You're too faery for your own good," Eric grinned teasingly.

After Eric left for Fangtasia, the night passed by rather uneventfully. I eventually decided to set up my easel and paints on the back porch overlooking the backyard and the pool. Pulling a memory to the forefront of my mind, I began painting a sunset that Alcide and I had once had the pleasure of witnessing in coastal Hawaii. A were leader from Hawaii had requested that Herveaux Construction complete a project for him as repayment from a favor that my father had asked. Luckily my father was otherwise occupied, which meant that Alcide and I got to be the ones to go down.

What everyone says about Hawaii is true. It's beautiful there. Breathtakingly so. "That is very beautiful," Godric's soft voice drew me from my thoughts and memories, making me jump lightly. "Sorry, I did not mean to startle you."

"It's alright," I smiled at him. "Thank you. Alcide and I spent a summer in Hawaii and we would got out on the beach just before sunset to watch the sun go down."

"Alcide is your brother?"

"On a technicality, yes," I nodded. "Biologically no. But he and I have grown up together under Jackson's rule." I grinned, resuming my painting. "And we got into quite a lot of trouble together, too. Of course he's older than me so he got more of the punishment. But I don't think he would've let Dad punish me too badly. Even if I was usually to blame for harboring the idea through its conception." I smiled fondly at the memories.

"You are very close to them."

"Except for Debbie," I chuckled. "But I suppose the sister never really likes her brother's fiancé, right?"

"I suppose not." We sat in silence for a bit as I finished the painting. I sat back from it, studying it. There were a few spots that would need to be touched up and corrected after it was allowed to dry through the night. But nothing that major.

Idly, I looked over to note that Godric was fairly decent company. Albeit he was slightly quieter company than I was used to—but it was a nice sort of quiet. There was just something about him that was calming. I couldn't help but wonder why he always looked so pained though. As if something were constantly weighing down on his soul. It took me a few seconds to realize that the vampire was now staring at me in confusion. I smiled sheepishly, my face heating up lightly. Oops. I was caught.

Thankfully, Eric had come home then with his progeny, Pam. She was apparently insistent on meeting the human woman Eric had taken for a companion. Though Eric loved his daughter endearingly, he did not quite trust her with my secret. So I did my best to play up the human housewife as much as possible, shutting off any inhumane scent.

"Oh, Eric dear, you're finally home!" I purred at him, clutching his arm happily. If I hadn't shot him a brief look while facing away from Pam, he probably would have given me away. But he's a smart man. He knew my plan the moment that look flitted across my features.

"Of course, darling," he smirked, bending down and kissing me. "I can't let Godric have you all to himself all night."

"That would be quite a crime indeed," Godric smiled lightly. He had caught on. Pam, however, was blissfully unaware.

"Well isn't that just darling," Pam rolled her crystal blue eyes in annoyance. "At least you picked a pet that knows how to dress." I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from retaliating. Eric's grip tightened lightly on my hands when I tensed.

"That's a high compliment coming from you, Pam."

"You know I at least try to take an interest in your play things." She examined her nails. "Looks like I need a mani/pedi. I'll just let myself out now. She's not all that interesting as I thought she would be." She cocked an eyebrow at me. "God knows she has to be, though, to share your bed." With a deceptively cutesy wave, she was out the door at vampire speed.

Once I was sure she was out of sight, I pulled away from Eric shooting him a dark look. "The kiss was overkill."

"Au contraire," the Viking grinned at me.

I shook my head, walking away from the two vampires. Though, if I hadn't known better, I could have sworn that Godric's face was a little more strained than usual. I pushed the thought from my mind, going outside to move my painting materials back into the house. Just as I was about to go upstairs to retire for the night, Eric appeared in front of me. I scowled at him.

"Are you angry with me?"

My eyebrows shot up as my jaw slacked. He actually looked sincerely worried about being an asshole. "No," I relented slowly. "I'm not angry with you. I was annoyed, but I'm not any more."

"Good, that would be unpleasant."

"You suck at apologies."

"I don't do it very often," he replied seriously. "But Godric thought that I should."

"And you hold his opinion in high esteem," I noted again. Eric then smirked and cocked an eyebrow.

"And he was angry that I kissed you." My brows pulled together as my mouth pulled into a frown.

"What? That's ridiculous."

"I had more faith in you, Aline," Eric shook his head in mock disappointment. "You should be more adept at reading vampires than most." What the hell did _that_ mean? He shook his head again, walking away with a gallant chuckle. I stared after him well after he had retreated from my line of vision. Cocky condescending little Viking bastard.

Finally it was time for my first shift at Merlotte's. I dressed in the uniform Eric had brought home for me last night. It was pretty standard. Black shorts and a white shirt with the bar's name scrawled across the back and a small emblem on the front. It was pretty standard. So I paired the looked with my black-on-black Converse lo-tops. Godric and Michael were both waiting for me downstairs when I went down. We left shortly after.

The ride over was relatively quiet. I was kind of nervous for my first day. Waitressing was going to be a new experience for me. As if sensing my agitation (which he probably did), Godric reached out and placed his hand over mine. "I'm sure that everything will be fine," he reassured me. I smiled gratefully at him, placing my other hand over his. When that one once again fell idly in my lap, I noted that he did not remove his hand. And I did not force the matter.

"You must be Aline Herveaux," a man maybe five or so years older than me greeted when I walked in. Michael had walked in a few minutes prior, acting as a patron of the diner. Godric had opted to wait outside until I could allow him to enter through the back entrance. (It wasn't that he needed an invitation because it was a public venue, but the door didn't open from the outside.) He would probably spend most of his time here in Sam's office. Unless he and Michael decided to switch positions. But that wasn't really any concern of mine to worry about. As far as Sam and the rest of the staff knew, I was simply one of Eric's possessions that he wanted to guard from, well, anyone that wasn't him or someone he had given permission to be around me.

"Sam Merlotte?" I reasoned.

"Glad to see you found the place with little trouble," he grinned. "Here, I'll introduce you to the staff tonight." He led me around to the other staff members, briefly introducing me to each one. He then supplied me with a pad, paper, and small apron-type thing. (The exact name of which escapes me.) "Have you ever waited tables before?"

"No," I admitted. "But I catch on quickly."

"I have a good feeling about you," he said warmly. "Otherwise I wouldn't have hired you." I nodded nervously.

Waitressing wasn't as bad as it sounded, actually. I think my father was just a brilliant over-reactor. And the tips weren't so bad, either. Plus it kept my hands pretty busy. I liked that. One of the other waitresses, a pretty blonde with deep chocolate eyes, came over to me during some down time. I think Sam said her name was Sookie Stackhouse. The name didn't really ring any bells. "How are you liking your first day?"

At least she was polite enough. "I like it," I replied honestly. "The people seem pretty nice so far."

"They are for the most part," she nodded. "Some of them can be pretty unpleasant."

"Yeah, I can imagine they could be." I made a mental note not to mention the company I kept. Then, with a surprise, I realized that the woman who was being so damn friendly was a telepath. My mind automatically went into a tighter lockdown than Fort Knox.

"Sorry," she said, embarrassed at having been caught. Then a funny look crossed her face. "Wait, how did you know?"

"I've always been able to," I answered vaguely.

"So there are _more_ of us?"

Not quite an _us_ category, but sure. "I've only met a few other people who could. My father could. It tends to be hereditary." She pondered this newfound information. "You don't tend to broadcast this, do you?"

"No," I said firmly. "I try not to let too many people catch on to it. So I'd appreciate it if—"

"It never happened," she smiled. We were cast into an awkward silence then. "So you're the human everyone is talking about that's with Eric?"

"You know him?"

"Unfortunately." There was a disgruntled dislike in her voice.

"He's not all bad." There was honesty in mine. "He mainly does that for show."

"He also hits on everyone for show?" I stared at her. "Sorry, that was rude of me."

"We're all rude, really. We just disguise it most of the time. But vampires aren't exactly known for being monogamous all the time. Hell, even some people aren't. What he does with other women is no concern of mine," I shook my head. "And he has already told me that I'm free to roam if I want to. Currently, I don't want to." I grinned. "Dealing with one vampire is quite enough."

"I know what you mean about that," she laughed before going to seat the newest bar patrons. I stared after her, in thought, before going to refill some of my area's drinks. She was quite the interesting human. When I returned to the bar area, Sam waved me over.

"How're you liking your first day so far?"

"I love it," I replied honestly. "The people are mostly friendly and the atmosphere is good."

"I'm happy to hear that," he grinned. "Because I'd like to offer you this position full-time."

"Good deal, Mr. Merlotte," I returned his grin and shook his outstretched hand.

"Please, call me Sam, Aline."

"Sam," I nodded with a small smile. Finally the night came to a slow close. When all of the patrons had exited, Godric came out of Sam's office. "If you weren't already dead, I would say you look bored to death," I teased lightly. He smiled.

"I do not mind waiting for you," he replied honestly. Michael came over.

"I'm gonna go stretch my legs. Make sure she don't do nothin' stupid," he drawled, elbowing me in my side. I stuck my tongue out in retaliation before going about my business.

"I still feel kind of bad that Eric roped you into doing this," I admitted. "I'm sure you have better things to do with your time."

"You would be surprised," he mused. "Though I suppose I'm unofficially on vacation."

"Vacation?"

"I am the sheriff of Area Nine."

"Eric neglects to mention a lot."

"He never has been the sharing kind. I fear I may be to blame for that reinforcement." Suddenly, something in my brain clicked as I looked at him in realization.

"You're Eric's maker."

"He really has left you uninformed."

"People seem to be doing that lately," I grumbled, wiping down the countertop a bit harder than necessary. Sam must have noticed the exchange because he moved closer.

"You alright, Aline?"

"I'm okay," I replied. "He's a friend." He nodded, moving only slightly out of earshot. I noted that Sam was oddly protective of people—perhaps he was some kind of canine shifter? I could smell shifter all over him, but I wouldn't be able to know the exact type of animal he preferred unless I actually asked him about it. Or cheated and used my telepathic powers. But that would draw too much attention to me.

"You make friends rather quickly," Godric noted, his gaze straying over my shoulder. I followed his glance just in time to see Sookie look away and pretend to be intently listening to the other waitress, Arlene.

"I must just be likeable," I chuckled.

It was a few hours before the restaurant was completely set up for the next day and the three of us returned to Eric's home. It was still relatively early, however, because Eric wasn't even back from Fangtasia when we got back. My brother, however, was waiting for us on the front porch. He nearly knocked me over in a hug when he got to me.

"Oh thank god you're okay," he breathed, planting a kiss on my forehead. He then proceeded to draw me into another bone crushing hug. I wriggled out of his grasp, confusion on my features.

"Alcide, what's going on?"

He paused. "We found out exactly which vampire it is that wants you in his collection," he said vaguely.

"And?"

His eyes met Godric's. "Does the name Russell Edgington mean anything to you?"

Godric's eyebrows raised lightly. "Unfortunately so. Are you positive that it's him?"

"Dad and I got paid a visit by his lackeys last night."

"Were you followed?" Michael asked, his eyes already scanning the horizon. He inhaled deeply, smelling the area.

"No, I made sure of it," Alcide said firmly. Then he turned to Godric. "What do you know about this vampire?"

"He's very unsympathetic toward humans. I suppose that he never really did leave the barabarous age he came from."

"Great. So what you're saying is that this man probably won't have any problem gutting anyone that tries to help me?" I asked. Godric nodded.

"I am afraid so."

"Then I should be removed from Eric's custody." Alcide gaped at me, grabbing my shoulders firmly.

"What the hell are you talking about? Eric is old enough to protect you better than me or Dad."

"I didn't mean to return home," I admitted. "I can't put you all in danger if all he really wants is me."

"You're insane."

"It's why you love me," I replied dismissively.

"What seems to be the problem?" Eric asked, appearing on his front porch with a look of mild interest.

"Russell Edgington wants me to be his personal Barbie doll."

"Edgington? Are you sure?"

"Dad and I were paid a visit from some of his men," Alcide nodded.

"This isn't good," Eric frowned. He glanced at Godric, as if asking a silent question. Well, he probably was since most maker and progeny vampires are bonded. Unless the maker releases the progeny. But I highly doubt that Godric would do that to Eric.

Godric nodded, his brows furrowed. Alcide studied the two suspiciously.

"Godric has agreed to stay here as long as he possibly can," Eric surmised. "He is twice my age but not nearly as old as Edgington. Having him here will be an advantage in front of the Authority providing that he has not wrapped them around his finger."

"They'll take both of your ages into combination?"

"Yes," Eric nodded. "Provided Edgington hasn't charmed the Authority into believing that his way is the right way. He has a habit of doing so."

"Can't you get to them first then?" Alcide questioned.

"Doing that would risk exposing your sister," Godric replied. "That would be a most grievous error because there are vampires on the authority that are far older than Russell and myself combined. It is better if she remains as anonymous as possible."

"So, in other words, I'm being babysat by vampires for the rest of my life," I frowned. That would take awhile. The fairy blood in me made me physically stop aging at eighteen. We weren't sure exactly what would happen to me eventually because, well, there aren't a plethora of fairies willing to pop up and spill the beans to me.

"Only until we can find a way to get rid of Edgington," Eric replied. Alcide looked up at him curiously.

"You would break vampire laws for Ali?"

"As hard as it is for you people to believe, he is capable of feelings," I snapped before Eric could reply.

"Your sister has proven herself to be a loyal friend," he smiled cockily at me. "So, yes, I would do everything in my power to protect her."

"As would I," Godric nodded.

"Aw, hell kid, you know I love you," Michael grinned at me.

"Good," Alcide nodded at them. "Because if not, I will find out where you fuckers rest. And it won't be pretty."

"Alcide," I smacked his chest.

"Blood or not, you're still my baby sister," he grinned at me. "I have to make sure you're in good hands."

"Between you and Jackson, it's a wonder I've ever managed to get out of the house at all," I muttered.

"That's only because we believe you too much."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"That's the biggest lie to ever believe."

"Hey! I can think of worse!"

Alcide raised his eyebrows at me.

"Okay, only a little bit. But still."

"But still nothing," Alcide chuckled.


	3. Revelations Part 2

I nearly growled in frustration the next morning. The boys had taken extraneous precautions and made sure that I had a guard around me literally wherever I went. By lunch time, I was about ready to dig into Michael's throat purely from irritation at the situation. He must have noted the change in my scent because he quickly sent the other guards away. It was only then that I relaxed to the point of being somewhat sociable. And the fact that the full moon was tonight didn't help in the slightest. "Aline?" Michael questioned tentatively.

"What?" I snapped, my blue eyes narrowing dangerously at him.

"I just—are you okay?"

"Fine."

He let the matter drop, stealing small glances at me then and again. I pretended he was nothing more than a brick wall. When I found that I couldn't concentrate enough to read, I relented to going swimming. That was enough of a physical activity that I would blow off some steam.

I spent hours in the water, floating on my back. With the water in my ears, I couldn't hear the guards. I could feel their minds near me but, thanks to years of training, I was able to shut out their thoughts just as easily as I had kept Sookie out of my mind. This meant that I could meditate my mind into a state of simply being. It was kind of like taking a century long nap. Every once in awhile I would do this. Especially if it was the day of a full moon and I was surrounded by other aggravated shifters. My fairy blood tends to make me shy away from things that agitate me. Like today, which leads to my little meditation gig. Without realizing it, I must have drifted off to sleep in that position because a pair of arms sliding under my figure startled me awake. I awoke to the emerald green eyes of Godric, who was looking at me in a mixture of panic and worry.

"What's wrong?" I asked immediately. If he were alive, he would have exhaled a sigh of relief as he nearly crushed my figure against his. It was then that I realized he was fully clothed, still.

"We had thought that you drowned," he replied. "You were asleep?"

"I couldn't have been for very long," I noted, looking up at the sky. It was only a bit darker than the last time I had noted it. He still looked startled. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

"Your heartbeat stopped," he pressed. I bit my lip.

"I was meditating," I admitted. He frowned at me. "Sometimes I meditate when I'm stressed out or annoyed. And, well, it's been known to put me into a state close to death. I'm not really awake for it all so I don't know the specifics of what happens to me. But Alcide and Jackson hate it when I meditate. They got used to it on the condition that I would tell them about it first."

"We may have to extend that rule here," the vampire noted dryly. For the first time that day, I grinned sheepishly.

It wasn't until someone cleared their throat that I realized Godric hadn't let me go. But he didn't force me to remain where I was when I pulled out of his grasp. My brother stood there with raised eyebrows. Our run tonight was going to be interesting. I got out of the pool with a shrug, telling Godric I would be back in an hour or so. Though I didn't turn to look, I knew that he was watching my brother and I run into the woods. Once we had cleared the woodline, we ditched our clothes before shifting into our wolf forms.

After we had had our fill, we returned to where we had ditched our clothes and quickly dressed again. "So you and Godric?" Alcide questioned.

"He thought I was dead," I shrugged. "I worried him."

He stared at me before shaking his head. "You're so damn oblivious to everything."

"Hey!"

"It's true. I know that look he was giving you," Alcide shook his head. "It's the same look I give Debbie." I wrinkled my nose.

"That's different, you guys are engaged. Godirc is probably just intrigued by me."

"You're ridiculous," he pulled his shirt on over his head. "And Debbie split." I was instantly concerned.

"What?"

"She's been seeing that fuckface Cooter."

"She left you for a man named _Cooter_?"

"Yeah," he replied dryly. "Look, all I'm saying is that if that man is looking at you that way, try and pay attention a little more. He seems like a good guy."

"You hated Marc."

"Not because he was a vampire," Alcide shrugged. "Dad may have hated him for that—so did most of our pack. But he didn't treat you well. Sold you out to try and save his own skin. This one doesn't strike me as the type to do that."

"I still think you're just insane," I shook my head at him, effectively ending the conversation. But it didn't end before I made the silent resolve to myself to maybe pay attention a little more. Vampires feel a natural pull toward me because of my blood. But Eric tends to keep his distance usually. I mean, I think he likes my company and all but Godric is less…reserved? I can't think of the right word for it, honestly. But that's probably because I'm all kinds of confused about it now. Thanks Alcide. You sure know how to make a girl paranoid.

My brother left an hour later to get back to Mississippi since he had a job to do in the morning. Eric was at Fangtasia, naturally, and Godric had kindly asked the guards to at least be partially at ease. So they only followed me whenever Godric wasn't around. And, as a result, I made sure to remain in Godric's care. But what Alcide said was still bothering me. Perhaps more than I thought because Godric inquired about it.

"It's just something silly Alcide said," I shook my head dismissively. "He seems to think that I have more allure and power over men than I do." The vampire's eyebrows raised in amusement.

"Is that so?"

"It's silly."

"You sell yourself short."

I frowned at him. "He seems to think that you care about me."

"I do."

"As more than a friend."

He sat there for a moment, trying to think of how best to continue the conversation. "Does this bother you?"

I studied him. Alcide was right. But did it bother me? "No," I shook my head. "It doesn't bother me. I just," I paused, "I don't understand it."

"How so?"

"You're just so…damn near perfect," I admitted with a laugh. "Patient, kind, understanding. I'm not full-blood, but I _am_ a werewolf. Patient, kind, and understanding are not words we use very often."

"You sell yourself short," he repeated with a chuckle. "And you speak too highly of me. I am not as patient and kind as you believe."

I smiled lightly at him. "I'm not naïve enough to think you're a saint. Nobody ever is—vampire or otherwise. But I am willing to bet that you rank higher than I do on that ladder."

"I think that you would be surprised." I let the matter drop, staring out across the still pool waters.

"I am sorry if I upset you," he said quietly after awhile. I looked at him, giving him a firm look.

"No, you didn't upset me," I admonished lightly. "I just—well, I guess I just feel bad that I didn't believe Alcide." Then I started giggling to myself. "This is one of those moments where I'm surprised at how different my thought patterns are from normal people." I stopped giggling to smile at him. "No, you didn't upset me."

We once again fell into silence, though he was visibly less worried than he had been. For some reason, I found it endearingly odd that I made a vampire that was over two-thousand-years-old nervous. As these thoughts passed through my mind, I became conscious of how tired I was. Slowly my eyes began to close, my head resting against Godric's shoulder.


	4. Vampire Masterminds At Work

The next morning, I awoke groggily in my bed. I tried to remember how I had gotten there but, when I couldn't, I simply assumed that Godric had taken me to bed when I had fallen asleep on him. Oops. Poor guy. I wasn't even sure how I felt about him and I was already using him as my own personal pillow.

I mean, sure he's attractive. Enough so that I would probably walk up to him and introduce myself if I had met him at a bar. But he was technically my body guard—and deserving of someone much higher than myself, I reminded myself. Geez. What the hell was wrong with me? Usually I wasn't so concerned about my value of self-worth but he seemed to make me more self conscious than usual in that department.

As I mulled over my thoughts, I began trudging downstairs with the goal of breakfast. I fried up some eggs, bacon, and made some toast before seating myself at Eric's kitchen table. There was usually a chef who would cook anything I wanted. But I hadn't even thought to go looking for him. My thoughts seemed more important than the task of eating, which I did faster than normal just to be done with it. I was staring at the drying butter on my plate when Michael walked in.

"You look like you're contemplating the importance of the universe," Michael joked lightly, giving me a crooked grin. I looked up at him with raised eyebrows. "Oh, hey, I didn't mean that was a bad thing if you are. I used to do that all the time when I was your age. But after awhile you just stop trying to contemplate why the hell you're here and you just start living because, well, what else are you going to do while you're here?"

I bit my lip at him. "Are you married?"

"No," he looked startled by my question.

"Sorry, I'm just trying to find someone a little more adept at relationships than me," I admitted.

"Godric?"

"God, did _everyone _but me know?"

"Well, you do seem unusually unobservant in that area," he admitted. "I suspected it but he confirmed it whenever he and Eric were communicating telepathically. I could sense his emotions shift when you came into question." I wondered again vaguely what exactly Michael was. "But he does genuinely care about you if that's your concern."

"No, I'd trust him for that," I admitted. "I just—why me?"

"Why not you?" He shrugged. "This isn't exactly an exact science. Stop over thinking it and just go with it. You seem to like him just as much as he likes you." I winced. Going with the flow wasn't my strong suit.

"I don't know for sure that I do," I shook my head, running my fingers through my chocolate hair. "What if I don't care about him as much as he cares about me? That seems to be a pretty nasty recurring problem in my love life. There's never a balance."

"You're one of those people who just can't enjoy a moment, huh?"

"I'm a werewolf _and_ a woman," I grinned. "Easy isn't in my dictionary."

"Even if you _were_ human, I don't think you'd be able to enjoy the moment," he shook his head.

"Hey! That's kind of offensive." I pretended to pout. Michael raised his eyebrows at me. "Okay, I suck at pretending to be offended when I'm not. So sue me."

"I don't think I'd even be alive if I harbored the thought."

"Probably not. Alcide and Dad are pretty tough."

"And you have two vampires willing to bend over backwards for you. One of them far older than most of them still in existence today." He grinned, standing up. "I'd be a dumb dead man if I even thought of hurting you at all."

"I can take care of myself, you know."

"I know—but you have people who want to take care of you. If I were you, I'd let them."

With that, he left me alone with my thoughts. I returned to them eagerly, frowning when I found that I was still in the same spot I had been. Oh well, perhaps a swim would help to ease the frustrations of my mind. I've always felt more at ease in the waters. Almost as if I were safer. If I had known a mother, I imagined that this was the type of comfort she would have provided. But I had never known my blood parents. And Alcide's mother had died shortly after she and Jackson had adopted me. I was too young to even remember the adoption, honestly.

Hell, I don't even know what it takes to be adopted in werewolf standards. I'm not even sure who all in the pack knew about it. There couldn't have been too many people who knew. Some of the people I've unfortunately gotten to know would have surely spilled this information whenever a little bit of alcohol entered their systems. But they never said a word. Maybe they were sworn to secrecy? But Jackson wasn't the packmaster. He couldn't command them all into silence.

Thinking about all of the possibilities made my head hurt, I realized as I floated on my back. I stared up at the sun, watching it slowly move across the sky. The clouds flowed freely around it—almost, but not quite, blocking its light from my face. I guess I should thank my lucky stars that my faery blood prevents me from getting sunburn. The thing about faeries is that we always seem impervious to the elements. Weather and the like never really seem to make much of an indent on us. Sure, we can get cold or hot but it's not quite like humans get. I naturally have a higher body temperature than humans, thanks to my werewolf side. But my faery side tends to neutralize extreme temperatures. It's kind of hard to explain—but I can be just as comfortable walking the Himalayas in jeans and a t-shirt as I am walking in the Sahara Desert. There's a difference but it's subtle. And it doesn't cause me discomfort.

I guess I'd say it's similar to finding out that my best friend's color is a different color than mine. I'll think about it. But it won't define very much about our friendship. It's the same thing, really, except that the color is the weather.

When the sky began to turn a vibrant shade of pink, I realized just how long I had been in the water and how far my thoughts had really strayed from what I had wanted to mull over today. I always do that. There's something that I swear needs my attention but I run from it. I get close enough to poke it before shying away and decided not to be a nuisance. That's ridiculous. How _exactly _can I be a nuisance to my own thoughts? Sometimes I astound even myself, I realized dryly as I wrapped a towel around my figure.

I then went upstairs to shower and get ready for work. Thankfully I had to work most of the night so I wouldn't be too tempted to talk to Godric any more. There were more questions that I had—ones that were probably gravely inappropriate. But my mind always borders on inappropriate. I blame my werewolf upbringing for that.

By the time I had finished getting read, there was barely more than the allotted drive time over left to spare. So when I opened the door Michael was outside of it waiting for me. "I thought you were going to hide in there forever," he chuckled. "Come on, you're going to be late. And I'm not sure how much you'll be able to sweet talk Merlotte into letting it slide." He paused, mid-step, and then turned to me. All mannerisms of joking were vacant from his face. Even he himself looked rather vacant, I realized.

"Michael? Are you alright?"

He looked at me for a few seconds before turning away from me and descending the stairs. "Northman!" he barked. I had never heard him use such a commanding tone with anyone before—not even the guards that were technically under his charge. Eric appeared in an instant, his maker at his side. "We have a problem."

"You saw something?" Eric asked, ignoring the fact that Michael was so obviously defying any sense of polite conversation.

"I did. Edgington's enlisted your detective as help," Michael said somberly. "The telepath at the bar used to date him—"

"Sookie," Eric breathed, a frown crossing his features.

"Sookie? Someone's after her?" I asked, instantly worried for my newfound friend. She seemed too sweet to have any enemies of merit. Godric seemed to sense my distress because he moved closer to me, not quite touching me, but allowing me to know that he was there if I needed him.

"Not as much danger as you're about to be," Michael shot me a look. "Bill wants you out of the area as much as Edgington wants to own you. He doesn't like the fact that Sookie has someone else to talk to. Someone else she can't hear—another telepath, even."

"You told her?" Eric turned on me.

"Not intentionally—I didn't _know_ there was a telepath there. So I wasn't exactly locking down my thoughts as tightly as I should have been. Whatever she is is harder to sense," I frowned. "It's a small portion, so it's nearly unnoticeable. Unless you're looking for it."

"She does tend to get herself into more trouble than she seems she's worth. You seem to have the same problem."

"Hey, you're being paid to take care of my problems. Sookie's on her own."

"For now she's safe," Michael interrupted. "The real problem is that Bill remembers her talking about one of the new girls also being a telepath. He doesn't know which one yet, because two other girls are new there. But he has a hunch that it's 'Eric's pet.'" I scowled at being referred to as a pet.

"I can simply overrule Compton into submission," Eric waved his hand.

"Sophie-Ann is in on it as well. She believes that Edgington will tire of Aline and that she'll be able to keep her then."

"What is it with you vampires and collecting people as pets?" I wrinkled my nose.

Gently, the vampire beside me took my hand. I clutched it gratefully. "How do we prevent this from happening?" Godric asked, his light green eyes landing on Michael.

The guard looked between the two of us, studying us. "We'd better get you to work." Before I could protest, I was being whisked out of the house by both Michael and Godric. "Tonight I'm going to be in Sam's office. Too many people have seen me there whenever Aline is working. You're going to have to keep an eye on her." He paused, shooting a worried glance at me. I knew that look. Alcide gives me that look frequently. It was one of those I-know-best-but-you-won't-like-it looks.

"If it'll help, I won't be opposed to it," I relented, though I very badly wanted to reject it before I even heard it.

"If Bill thinks that you're the, uh, companion of someone other than Eric, he'll be less inclined to be suspicious."

I gave him a look, raising my eyebrows.

"Of course, only if you allow it," he added hastily. "But it would buy us some time."

I was silent as I mulled over this imposition. True, it _would_ be ill advised to try to steal the mate of not only one but two different vampires. That would mean Bill would look less than he typically would simply because it would be grounds to rip him to shreds. (I may pay to see that eventually, however. I've met the vampire a few times. Though I never really liked him, I hadn't wanted to really stake him until now. But he had just signed his own death warrant. If I lived long enough, I was planning on sinking my teeth into his sorry excuse for a vampire's ass.) By the time we had arrived at Merlotte's, I had made the decision to endure it. I just hoped Godric didn't get the wrong idea. But he seemed to be the type that would respect whatever boundaries I set. Something I was definitely not used to.

"What do I have to do for him to think I'm Godric's companion?" I asked as Michael killed the engine. So that I didn't have to judge the emotions that went across anyone's faces, I was staring intently out the window intently at Sookie's little yellow car.

"You do not have to if—"

"It makes the most sense," I cut Godric off. "We'll talk about whatever implications it has later. For now, I just need to be able to stay alive."

"You won't have to do anything," Michael interrupted me before I could inflict as much pain as I wanted to. "Just allow his advances. Godric will do most of the work."

Without waiting for anything else, I got out of the car. Neither one of the guys followed me right away as I walked inside. I went straight to Sam's office to get my apron and order pad, snagging a pen from his desk. When I walked out into the hallway, I nearly ran over Lafayette. "Damn girl, who pissed in yo' cheerios this morning?" he asked when I mumbled a sorry excuse for an apology and kept moving. "Crazy ass hooker bitch," he grumbled when he thought I was out of earshot.

"Sorry I'm a little late, Sam," I forced a smile as I stepped behind the bar to address my boss.

"Don't worry about it, you're usually early," he waved me off. "Everything okay?"

I forced my smile until it hurt. "Yeah, why wouldn't it be?"

He studied me doubtfully before beginning to make the drinks that the local drunks were asking about. I flicked my long dark hair over my shoulder as I set to work. Sookie was also working tonight but she seemed entirely distracted by something. Something she wasn't exactly willing to share, it seemed, because she avoided me as much as I was avoiding everyone else. That perplexed me.

I didn't have much time to contemplate what was wrong with her, however, because the front door opened to reveal the rather brooding figure of Bill Compton. A scowl threatened to break across my face, but I withheld it. At least I withheld it until he went over to Sookie. Her look of distress increased when he approached her. And, from the way that she tensed, I knew the reason she was upset was because of him. Whatever it was, however, she was unwilling to discuss here. This angered him, so he sauntered over to the bar where Sam was handing me drinks to take to my tables.

"That's the last one," he informed me, handing me a White Russian.

"Thanks," I smiled lightly. He gave me a small, crooked smile before addressing the vampire. Bill ordered a TruBlood—type O positive. Sookie had said that she was his favorite blood type. For some reason, I had found that all the more creepy. Don't get me wrong, I'm okay with swapping blood. But most vampires don't share that kind of information. Bill Compton is a strange vampire, indeed. Probably a lot more unstable than even Edgington. (Though I've never met the latter, I assume that he's highly unstable simply because of the way that Godric and Eric reacted to his name. Eric isn't exactly a pretty, pretty princess so it worried me slightly.)

When I returned to the bar, Godric walked through the front door. Most of the people in the bar turned to stare at him. I realized, then, that he wasn't wearing his usual ensemble of white. Instead, he wore a plain black button up shirt, light blue stone-washed jeans, and black shoes. Still, he attracted a lot of stares. He ignored everyone else, though, focusing his gaze on mine. A smile slowly spread across his pale face. He walked to the bar, sitting directly across from where I was standing.

"I thought that you might want some company, älskling," he addressed me directly. I smiled lightly, propping my elbows on the bar in front of him.

"You just couldn't wait until I got off to see me, huh?" I teased.

"I wanted to see where you worked when it was lively." He glanced around, causing everyone to pretend that they were busy eating, talking, or anything not involving staring at the ancient vampire. "You have a very lovely establishment, Mr. Merlotte," Godric complimented Sam. The shift cocked an eyebrow as he cleaned out a glass.

"Thanks—"

"Oh, how silly of me. I haven't introduced you to anyone yet!" I interrupted. "Sam, this is Godric. Godric, this is my boss, Sam."

"I have heard a lot of good things about you," Godric smiled kindly at him. "You treat her very well here." Sam was completely confused by this whole thing but went along with it. I made a mental note to buy him some expensive kind of alcohol for his troubles. He probably didn't think hiring a waitress from Mississippi was going to be quite _this _much trouble. Ah, men. They'll learn sooner or later that we're always more trouble than we appear to be. I just happen to be thrice that amount of trouble on a good day. (Something I blame my werewolf brother for. Mostly. Okay, it's not his fault—but I still blame him anyway. And Alcide would probably let me throw the blame onto him. He encourages me more than he probably should. But so does Jackson. I think that's just part of being a werewolf, really.)

I brought Godric a TruBlood—even though he hadn't asked—and went back to tending my tables. However, I made it a point to talk to him as often as I could, wondering vaguely if he was really like this when he dated. Does he even date? He was born before dating was even a common place ritual. And courtship is a rather new notion in a greater sense of the world. Before it was all simply mating or arranged marriages. Those things still occur today, but they've switched into the realm of being the abnormal instead of the norm. It's kind of funny to sit and think about how things have changed so much. Some people don't even realize things have changed or that they _do_ change right under their noses. Other people are more aware of it, I suppose. I generally like to think that I'm one of those people that can appreciate a good shift in a culture. But I still have a penchant for digging around older societies. I blame me parading around as an interior designer for that.

When people began to leave, Bill moved down the bar to sit beside Godric. I was too far away to hear them talking and using any of my enhanced senses would mean that I would have to unmask my scent slightly. Which, given the current populace in the room (AKA William Compton) was a very bad idea. I would just have to trust that Godric knew what he was doing. I finished cleaning up my table, preparing to take some dishes to the kitchen, when I noticed Bill give a polite bow and walk out of the restaurant.

"What was all that about?" I inquired, pausing at Godric's side.

"I simply informed Mr. Compton that you were already spoken for," he replied simply. Sookie, who had been standing nearby, huffed and immediately headed outside. Sam stared after her in a mixture of shock and worry. Without asking, I shoved my bin full of dishes at him, following the upset blonde outside.

"Sookie," I said softly, worry clearly written all over my person.

"What—oh, I'm sorry Aline," she said sadly. "I'm not mad at you. Bill and I had a fight."

"I'm sorry to hear that," I said sincerely. I sat next to her on the brick half-wall that many of the employees would perch against to smoke. Neither Sookie or I smoked, I mused in a brief ironic thought.

"I just can't believe he would move on so quickly," she confessed glumly. "I didn't even really mean to break up with him. He just made me so mad and he wouldn't even listen to me! I didn't know how else to get his attention. But it looks like that wasn't the right way, either."

"Sookie, he probably wasn't genuinely interested in anyone else," I reassured her. "He's probably just angry. Vampires aren't exactly used to being put into their places."

"I guess they wouldn't be," she admitted. "They're used to just glamouring whatever they want out of people."

"Some of them," I agreed. "But they aren't all bad."

"Like Godric?" I shot me a knowing look. I bit back the silly grin that wanted to cross my face.

"I'm sure he's not the last nice vampire on the planet," I chuckled. "But, yes, like Godric."

She looked at me curiously. "How'd you and he get together? I thought you were with Eric."

"Well, technically I suppose that they share me," I lied, going with Michael's suggestion. She gave me a slightly mortified look. "Not against my will or anything. They're both very sweet. But they both just happen to have an interest in the same girl. And I'm not exactly known for settling down," I teased with a wink, playfully knocking her shoulder with my own. "Seriously. We're only young once. Might as well live it up, right?"

"I suppose so," she said thoughtfully.

"And if you want to live it up, I think I know a guy who is more than willing to fulfill that aspect—"

"Aline!"

"What? Oh, no, I didn't mean _I_ was going to share. I _don't _share. I was referring to the overly worried man I burdened with a bin of dishes before I came out here."

"Sam?" Before she could venture that thought any further, she realized that we had been outside for a good twenty minutes at least. "Oh! Sam! Work—we should get back to work!"

I stared at her in shock before laughing. That was the first time all night that I had laughed that hard and, by the confused blonde's face, I knew that I looked at crazy as I felt. Maybe I just needed a good night's sleep was all. And less psychotic vampires in my life. But the latter wasn't bound to happen any time soon. I would settle for sleep, then.


	5. Yet

After the crowd had dwindled down to the point of being null, Sookie and Arlene scrubbed down the tables while I opted to refill ketchup bottles, salt and pepper shakers, and then put down the trademark green placemats on the tables when they were done. Between the three of us, it only took us an hour to get the place set up for the day shift the next morning. Sam had taken care of the bar, I discovered. That meant that we were free to leave. I was the last to drop my apron off in Sam's office.

"Goodnight, Sam, I'll see you tomorrow," I smiled at him. He looked up at me thoughtfully. He looked like he wanted to say something but thought better of it.

"Goodnight, Aline," he relented. I lingered for a moment before giving him a nod. Without being able to help myself, I reached out with my mind. He was wondering what it was about me that made vampires want me so badly. And there was enough curiosity to prompt him to find out someday, especially (he decided) if I was going to continue working for him. And he thought I was a damn good waitress, so he didn't see _why_ there was a reason to fire me. Sookie got into trouble all the time and he kept her on. But he was in love with her, he chastised himself. He wasn't in love with me. Certainly, though, he was intrigued—

I stopped listening then, coming to terms with the fact that I knew I wouldn't want whatever information Sam had. It would probably just make my life harder, not better. I climbed into the car without really bothering to acknowledge Godric or Michael. Neither said anything, apparently reading the look on my face that clearly said I needed some time to figure things out. What exactly I was figuring out was one of the things I needed to figure out. I wanted to help Sookie. But I didn't want to be abducted by her asshole boyfriend and given to Edgington and then apparently the Queen of Louisiana. So, naturally, part of me wanted to stake Bill with something lined in silver. After, of course, torturing his sorry excuse for a Southern gentleman's ass.

My lips twitched upward at the thought. I noticed Godric watching me curiously. He was quite clearly confused by the sudden change in my mood. This made me start to giggle to myself. Then I remembered Sookie's perplexed look. I giggled a little harder. Godric was looking to Michael for an explanation.

"Hey, man, don't look at me," he shrugged. "I'm not a wolf. Or a faery."

Immediately, I pictured Michael in a fairy costume. The ridiculous looking ones that don't _really _have anything to do with the fae—those costumes. The giggle became full fledged hysterics as I began crying from the sheer exertion of laughing.

"Is she sick?"

"I think she's hysterical." Michael gave me a suspicious look before pushing a little button near his rearview mirror, effectively putting up a window between his little driver's box and Godric and I.

Finally, I calmed down. The ancient vampire was still staring at me. "Are you alright?"

"I'm exhausted," I admitted, a smile gracing my lips. "A psychotic vampire is trying to make me his personal Barbie doll. He's enlisted the help of my friend's boyfriend—who, by the way, is trying to abduct me so that he can give me to this psycho. And then apparently this psycho is going to get bored of me and give me to the Queen of Louisiana. I'm fucking brilliant, man."

Godric smiled sadly at me, gently pulling my shoulder until I was lying down with my head in his lap. It was only seconds before I was asleep. I vaguely felt the car come to a stop, Godric lifting me quite easily out of the car and up the stairs, into the house, up the stairs again, and through the double doors of my room. After that, I lost consciousness entirely again, staying asleep until the next afternoon.

When I awoke, I remembered the swords that were hidden in my closet. With a smile, I decided to retrieve them so I could clean them and present them to the vampires. Something of a thank you for watching me. Not that they really needed to be thanked, I don't think (Eric is being paid and, well, Godric apparently has something of an interest in me). But they're going to be forced to accept them whether they like it or not. I think they will.

As I cleaned them, thinking about how the vampires would react, I relished briefly in the fact that I wasn't worried about winding up in a cage at the end of the afternoon. I had just finished cleaning and polishing the swords when dusk fell. Eric was trudging out of his room just as I descended the stairs. When he saw me, he stared.

"What," he began slowly, "are those?"

"Presents," I grinned simply. I handed him the Viking sword. "This one's for you."

"Viking? Where on earth did you find this?"

"An antique shop," I waved it off carelessly. "They didn't think it was anything of value."

"It was my brother's," he said quietly, examining it. He turned his blue eyes to meet mine. They were hard to read. "You continue to impress me. That is a rare quality in a breather."

"So heartfelt," I rolled my eyes with a smile. When he simply remained silent, I left him alone. I didn't have to look very hard for Godric. He was standing outside looking at the stars. Before disturbing him, I took a moment to take in the sight. He seems to have given up on wearing nothing but white. Eric's insistence that it wasn't practical must have worn him down. Not that I could say I really minded. These new clothes suited him well, I thought. I had been so busy studying him that I hadn't realized he had turned around to face me. "Hey," I smiled lightly.

"Good evening," he returned my smile. "Did you sleep well?"

I nodded. "Sorry for falling asleep on you. That's, what, twice now?"

He shook his head, the smile not leaving his face. "It is alright. You were tired."

"Thank you." I bit my lip. "I thought you might like this." I held out the sword gingerly. He stepped forward, taking it from my hands.

"How did you find this?"

"I made Michael go shopping with me. On the way back, I saw a little antique shop on the way back, so I made him stop there so I could look around. The owners weren't very knowledgeable in anything, really. They didn't really know what they had."

He was silent as he studied the hilt of the sword. When he finally looked up at me, his eyes were lined with crimson. "Thank you," he said sincerely. "It is very beautiful."

"I was just in the right place at the right time, I guess." He gently laid the sword down on one of the chairs, stepping closer to me. There was a slight pause, a hesitation, before he pulled me closer and firmly pressed his lips against mine. Any reservations I had instantly melted away.

When someone cleared their throat behind us, we pulled away. Eric and Alcide were standing there. "Oh, by all means, don't stop on my account," Eric smirked. His eyes flickered from my face to Godric's, his smirk growing.

Alcide gave Godric a long, hard stare. "You hurt her, I'll stake you. Understood?"

"I have no intentions of harming your sister in any way," Godric replied patiently. He put his arm around my shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. I smiled thankfully at him, squeezing his hand with my own to let him know that I appreciated it.

"You certainly don't have any intentions of letting her go, though."

"No, I do not."

"Hey, wait a minute," I interrupted. "I get that you manly men like to put chains on everything that you _think _is yours but—"

"You just allowed him to claim you," Eric informed me.

Instantly my face crinkled into confusion. "I _what_?"

"You don't know," Alcide raised his eyebrows at me. He then scowled at Godric, yanking me out of the vampire's grasp. His eyes narrowed slightly, but he allowed my brother to led me away from the two vampires. Not that it would really do any good, though. They'd be able to hear us anyway. "Do you know anything about claiming?"

"Nothing other than I apparently just allowed it to happen."

My brother shifted uncomfortably. "When a vampire claims you, it means that no other vampire can touch you. Actually, nothing else can touch you, either. You're marked, so to speak." A hesitant pause. "Forever, or until otherwise noted."

Slowly, the gears clicked into place. The reservations I had dropped earlier snapped back into place. My furious azure gaze turned to Godric. "You _claimed_ me like a piece of _meat_?"

"Five seconds ago you were all over him," Eric frowned at me. "Now that you have his commitment, you no longer want him?"

"I never said that," I hissed. "And stay out of it, Viking, before I sink my teeth into you."

Eric looked as if he were going to retort as that smirk spread across his face. Alcide quickly intervened, grabbing me by the elbows and pulling me away from the vampires.

"I'm not going to cry if you rip out Northman's throat," he spoke softly into my ear. "But he's one of the only things standing between you and Edgington."

Godric was quietly watching me, his face deliberately void of any emotions. I struggled to calm my breathing down.

"Alcide," I said softly.

"Little Optimist?"

"Let go." He hesitated. "I want to talk to Godric. Alone," I added, shooting Eric a dark look. My brother nodded roughly, releasing me. He jerked his head toward the house, receiving a nod from Eric. Give men wheels and they're _still _cavemen. After a few tense moments, Godric and I were the only ones left outside.

"You're angry with me," he noted.

"No, I'm not angry. I left angry a few stops back. I'm livid," I snapped. "_Why_ on Earth—"

"Because I do not want anyone else touching you." The way he said it so simply made me shake my head in disbelief.

"Look, I realize you're kind of old school but I'm _very _new school. We haven't even been on a date and you're already making sure I don't leave your side—_ever_?"

"It will help to deter any vampires that Russell sends after you." Logic. This man was trying _logic _with an angry werewolf? An angry _female _werewolf.

"How exactly do they even know that I'm claimed?"

"My scent will always be on you." I gave him a doubtful look.

"How?"

"It's hard to explain," he admitted. "But only older vampires are capable of it."

I furrowed my brows, speaking slowly: "so no one else can outdo this claim?"

"Only vampires older than myself. They are few and far between, however."

"Edgington is older than you."

"True, but his lackeys are not. Bill and Sophie-Ann will not be able to claim you."

"And this was entirely your predominant thought?" I asked, a small smile twitching at my lips.

"Not entirely," he admitted, a cocky smirk crossing his features.

"Well, the mystery of Eric's smirk is revealed."

"I taught him a great many things, I'm afraid. Not all of them good."

"Clearly." I studied him for a few moments. "Have you ever claimed anyone else before?"

"I have not."

"Why?"

"I never felt the need to. Companionship has never been a desire of mine. I had Eric and my nest mates. And my work."

"Why me?"

"I like you."

"Aren't werewolves and vampires supposed to be natural enemies or some shit like that?"

"It's really just an ego match."

"This doesn't mean I have to do or say anything extra, does it?"

"No," he shook his head with a grin. "Simply be yourself."

"I'm kind of a handful."

"I have time to kill."

"It's not because of my blood?" I asked. Not an orthodox way of going about it, but it was a question I really needed an answer to. It was one that I had to know if I was _actually_ going to try to go along with this. Well, more like I would pretend it didn't exist until I was okay with the idea if it ever arose.

"I have never had your blood," he pointed out. "So no."

"Alright, then I won't kill you yet."

"Yet?"

"Give it time, I'm sure I'll want to kill you eventually. I wanted to about five minutes ago. But I guess it's not the worst thing in the world to have some imaginary string tied to your pinky all the time, huh?"

He looked honestly confused—which is a pretty impressive emotion to pull out of a vampire. Usually their emotions are so diluted that I simply _assume_ that the emotion I would have is the one that they do. Most often there's nothing more than a flicker in their eyes and the briefest flit across their thoughts. Godric, however, looked completely and utterly perplexed. Score one for Aline. But that doesn't quite make us even. I think he got at least twenty-five for that whole claiming thing. But don't worry, I'll get him back. "I'm sorry?"

"It's something I heard once," I said dismissively. "Apparently there's a lore in Japan about soul mates being tied together by pinky strings. This whole claiming thing works out in a similar fashion in my mind. Even though I know that's not how it works."

"You will never cease to amaze me," he smiled lightly. "We should probably let them know that we've decided to not kill each other."

"Yet," I amended with a grin.


	6. Safe

"Are you sure about this?" I asked Alcide hesitantly. My brother shot me a dark look. Apparently telling Jackson about Godric was of the utmost importance. The only catch was that Godric couldn't be there incase Dad, well, wanted to be a typical dad and grabbed a shotgun loaded with wooden bullets. No, seriously, he has one of those. It was his idea of a way to keep Marc in line if he ever strayed off course. I think he was seriously disappointed that he never got to use it. There are parts of some people that worry other people—this part of Jackson was one that worried me. Alcide was less worried than I was. He seemed to think that the fact that he was pulling in Godric's favor would be better for the vampire. And me. But that didn't mean that Dad _wasn't _going to flip shit.

"Come on, time to bite the bullet," he herded me into the house. I shot him a look. "Sorry. Not what I meant."

"Still doesn't help matters any."

"I'm not always here to help. I _am _your brother."

"Men."

"You love me."

"That has nothing to do with anything."

"Ah, but it has everything to do with anything."

"I hate you."

"I love you, too."

"What are you two bickering about _now_?" Jackson asked as he came out into the living room.

"Aline has a new suitor," Alcide offered.

"Ass," I glared at him. He shot me a cocky grin, raising his eyebrows tauntingly. I like him a lot more when Debbie isn't around. (I realize things at the strangest times.)

"A new 'suitor?' Who—" His face crinkled uncharacteristically as he caught a whiff of Godric's scent. "Another vampire. And you let him claim you."

"Technically I didn't know that's what he was doing—"

"But you still got involved with him."

"He's nice."

Dad stared me down, clearly reminding me that I had said the same thing about Marc. Sometimes I'm a really bad judge of character. That was one of those times. Everybody gets one, right? Or ten.

"He is," Alcide saved me. "I've met him a few times. He's willing to lay down his life for hers."

Jackson looked unconvinced as he leaned back into his chair. "Is that so?" I hated that his voice was so calm. It usually meant that he was beyond angry. He was disappointed. I hate disappointing him. But I do it frequently enough, I suppose.

"He is Eric's maker." This got our father's attention.

"His maker? Eric is a thousand years old—his maker is still alive?"

"He's from Gaul," I offered, knowing that my father was looking for an age bracket. "He's over two thousand years old."

"If he weren't a vampire, that would make him a pedophile. Actually, I'm not convinced that it doesn't."

"In this case, that might be Aline," Alcide interjected. "Godric looks like he's sixteen. Maybe eighteen."

"Hey! I look younger than I am," I shot at him.

"You're always angry. Anger makes you look older," Dad chuckled. "I'd like to come and meet him tonight."

"Oh, I dunno, I have work—"

"At eight. That's enough time to meet and greet," Alcide decided.

"It might not be. You know how Eric is about unannounced guests. He needs enough time to do his hair."

"Please, Aline, I won't shoot him," Dad held up a hand to silence me. "Yet—and at least not with wooden bullets. But if he's as nice and respectable as you say he is, then I'm sure I'll like him." I raised my eyebrows at him. "I'll try not to think about eating him, how's that?"

"Coming from you, that means a lot."

"I don't know whether to be complimented or insulted that my daughter thinks so little of me."

"Werewolf problems," I nodded sympathetically. Alcide looked at me, cringing.

"Stop watching _Jersey Shore_."

I shot him an innocent grin. He didn't buy it.

Alcide and I bid our father goodbye shortly after, beginning the drive back to Louisiana. It was a relatively quiet drive. Not uncomfortably so, or anything, but quiet nonetheless. We arrived at Eric's house (more of a manor, really) sooner than I thought we would. It was still well into the afternoon when he pulled into the driveway. That meant there were at least a few hours of daylight left. Michael was waiting on the front porch like he had said he would be. Alcide gave me a quick kiss on the forehead before backing out of the driveway. I waved until I couldn't see him anymore.

"Michael," I greeted warmly. When he remained still, I suddenly noticed just how quiet it was. None of the guards were walking around, nor were any of the help. I bit my lip, reaching out to touch Michael's shoulder. He slumped forward. There was a pulse and a slow, faint brain pattern emitting from him. So he was still well and alive. But I had a feeling the intended infliction was to be fatal.

Cautiously, I pushed the front door open, my ears straining for any sound at all. There were footsteps behind me—Michael must have woken up, I hoped. When I turned, however, I felt a sharp pain strike the side of my head. As I fell to the floor a tall, slender figure faded from my focus, my eyes falling shut.

I awoke with a groan a few hours later, not quite sure where I was. Or who I was with. "Ah, the pretty princess is awake," a familiar voice sneered at me. I stared up into the seething eyes of Debbie Pelt. Motherfucker. I knew that bitch wanted to kill me. "Now I know what Alcide found so damn special about you," she smirked coldly. "You've been keeping things from the pack."

"Why do you care?" I mumbled. "You aren't even _part_ of the pack any more."

"You're right I'm not part of that pussy pack any more. None of you have what it takes to be a real wolf."

"You really are a psychotic bitch, aren't you?"

Her face contorted in anger as she reached out and slapped me in the face. She was about to hit me again when a male were grabbed her wrist. "Be nice, darlin', we need her alive. Edgington don't want her dead," he reminded her.

"You're working for a vampire," I stared at her. "Seriously? You don't even _like_ them."

"No," she agreed, "but I sure do love seeing you suffer." She giggled as the man beside her nuzzled her neck affectionately. He must be Cooter, I assumed. While they were busy rubbing their scents all over one another, I took the time to examine my surroundings. I was in the back of a van. It was simple, really. Maybe one of the ones that a gardener would own. Or a less wealthy construction worker.

There was another were in the front seat that was driving. The three of them took out an entire house full of guards? That didn't seem quite right to me.

"You're wondering how we did it, aren't you?" Debbie stared at me.

"Actually, yes," I turned to face her. A sharp pain shot across the side of my head. That bitch probably gave me a concussion.

"The bl—"

"Debbie, watch your mouth," Cooter warned.

"What's it going to matter? She'll find out anyway. Edgington wants her to be his new little pet. I'm sure she'll have to attend our little meetings anyway."

"Don't mean it's a good idea to be sharing all our secrets with someone like _her_."

"She has the scent of a vampire all over her. She ain't no angel." He gave her a disapproving look before looking away. She took that as the signal to go ahead and satiate my curiosity. "We're Edgington's pack," she boasted proudly. "He gives us a steady supply of V."

"You're drinking a vampire's blood now? You really are just cheap white trash—"

_Thwack._

I was unconscious again before she had even completed the blow.

When I regained consciousness, I was lying on a cold floor of concrete. My hands and feet were still bound, causing a stiff pain to radiate in my joints. I craned my neck to get a better look of the room. It was some kind of basement. An unfinished one, I noted wryly. Of course Debbie would want me to be as uncomfortable as I possibly could.

With a little difficulty, I forced my body into a sitting position, resting my chin on my knees. The only word that came to mind was fucked. I was really fucked. Really, really, really fucked. Momentarily, I wished that Eric or Godric would have had my blood. They would at least be able to somewhat pinpoint me. But we hadn't done any blood swapping. That meant that I was either on my own or someone had to figure out what was going on. Which I didn't think was likely. Maybe Alcide would. Debbie was likely to go and rub it in his face with a bunch of vague, critical jabs. But there's no guarantee in that.

I sat up a little straighter. The claim. Maybe Godric would be able to find me with that. Wait, better yet—I might be able to contact him telepathically because of this bond. It was a long stretch, but it was the best bet that I had. I took a deep, calming breath and tried to clear my mind. Before I could, however, the basement door flew open. A pretty vampire descended the stairs, looking like she had just stepped out of a 1920's movie. Though the way she moved suggested she was far older than that. There was something deliberately practiced in the way that she moved.

"So you're what all the fuss is about," she mused, studying me. "I was expecting someone a little more extravagant."

"Sorry, you caught me on laundry day," I replied evenly. She leaned in closely to me.

"You aren't scare that I'll drain you dry right here and now?"

"Edgington wants me alive. Besides, you can't touch me."

"You're right, _I _can't," she frowned. "Someone has already laid claim to you. A vampire much older than myself." She inhaled my scent. "That just makes you smell all the sweeter, though. A forbidden fruit." Her fangs extended, a wicked smile crossing her face.

"Edgington called," Cooter descended the stairs, "he said that he'll be here later tonight. But he wants her in tact."

Her fangs retracted. "Fine." She gave me another long glance before going up the stairs with Cooter, leaving me alone. I immediately set to work clearing my mind, trying to 'feel' Godric. After some sifting, I found a faint trace of him. My mind quickly clung to it, calling out to him.

"_Aline?" _his panicked voice entered my thoughts.

"_Oh thank god,"_ I replied telepathically. _"I wasn't sure that would work."_

"_Where are you?"_

"_I don't know. Alcide's ex-fiancée, Debbie, kidnapped me. Edgington is supplying them with V."_ I felt his disgust at the idea. _"I'm in some kind of basement."_ I tried to will my location to him. It was something I hadn't done before. But I had heard of it being done.

"_I'm unfamiliar with that location."_ An image of the woman crossed my mind. _"I am familiar with her. She often works for Edgington. Her name is Lorena Krasiki."_ The door opened, startling me and causing me to unintentionally broaden the connection. He was now seeing exactly what I was seeing.

"Bring her upstairs, Lorena insists that we feed her," Cooter grumbled to the two other werewolves he had at his side. The one sliced through the ropes that bound my feet with a pocket knife while the other simultaneously hoisted me to my feet. This made the pain in my shoulder worse, causing me to wince.

"Aw, did that hurt?" the taller one with the knife grinned at me. "You've been around those vampires too much. Made you a delicate little flower," he said decisively. "Maybe some time with our pack will put you back on track. Edgington will treat you right. Make sure you're a proper wolf. He'll even give you some blood."

I remained silent as they carted me upstairs. "Thought you said she was a mouthy little thing?" the shorter of the two unfamiliar weres addressed Cooter.

"She is. Shoulda heard the way she was disrespecting Debbie. All my girl ever wanted was to be her friend but this little bitch wouldn't even give her the time of day." He shot me a dark, wicked look. "I hope Edgington drains you dry."

I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from retorting. Godric chuckled in my mind, apparently having caught that thought. _"You are in Russell's mansion. I will be there shortly."_

Before I could protest or address the situation, he was gone from the connection. So I was just to sit here and wait for him to arrive? Suddenly I realized just how lucky I was that Debbie and Cooter hadn't gone looking for the vampires. Or at least they certainly hadn't found them. I'm not sure what I would have done then. The thought of losing Godric terrified me more than I thought it should have. Far more than the thought of losing Eric saddened me. No—losing Godric would have far more of an effect on me than the Viking, no matter how dear I held his company. That thought in itself sent a shiver of fear down my spine.

I was forced to sit down at an expensive table with an overly extravagant spread before me. A tall, refined vampire stood in the doorway. "Now how is she supposed to eat with her hands bound like that?" he scolded the werewolves. "Even I don't overlook this and I'm a vampire." He undid the tie simply. "I apologize for the way that they've been treating you. My Russell would be deeply angered by this," he said sincerely, looking into my blue eyes with big, brown eyes. "My name is Talbot. I am Russell's husband."

Russell has a…husband? I didn't see that one coming, I admitted silently. "Aline," I replied with an insincere smile. "But I'm sure you know that already."

"Please, there's no need to be timid here. Help yourself." He looked at the werewolves behind me. "You're free to leave now. You will be paid tomorrow."

They left the room grumbling in irritation. Talbot watched me expectantly, I looked at the food hesitantly.

"Don't worry, it is not poisoned or anything. Russell wants you alive. And I don't really see the need to kill you all so senselessly. Really, you can be quite useful."

"Werewovles or mortals?"

"Does it matter?"

"I suppose not."

"Good. Now, please, at least have some of the ham. It is our chef's specialty I'm told. Ham used to be one of my favorites. Before I became involved with Russell, of course."

"Do you regret becoming a vampire?" I asked curiously. He looked at me, somewhat amused by the directness of my nature.

"No, I do not. I love Russell dearly. I would and did gladly give up my mortality for an eternity with him."

"I can barely promise a guy a month and you're in for the long haul," I mused.

"I'm sure that Russell will arrange for you to have your own play thing," he patted my hand reassuringly. "Then again, there has already been a claim laid upon you. By a vampire more than twice my age." Curiosity nagged at the edge of his brain. "Who, may I ask, was the one to take such drastic interest in you?"

"I was," Godric's even voice interrupted. I jumped in surprise, turning to face him with wide eyes. Before Talbot could gather his wits about him, I scrambled out of my seat and immediately went to his side. Once again, he was dressed in his typical white attire. I wondered vaguely if it was the clothes he wore when dealing with other vampires. But this time the clothes were stained with blood.

"Godric, Sheriff of Area Nine," Talbot said delicately, his slender eyebrows raised. "I'm rather impressed, Aline. You have rather good taste it seems."

I decided that now was not the time to dictate who picked who. So, instead, I simply stood at Godric's side.

"I could do very little to stop you and you know that. Especially with the help you have destroying our help. I'd appreciate it if you would stop that," he added with a frown, "I quite like the décor. Picked it out myself."

"You aren't going to try to force me to stay?" I questioned, my eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Of course not," he waved his hand. "You'll simply be another distraction for Russell. Honestly. You'd think that three thousand years would cut down on his attention deficit disorder but it seems only to have enhanced it." My eyebrows raised skeptically. "I can't guarantee that he'll forget about you. But he may get distracted by something else entirely."

"You are very kind," Godric acknowledged thankfully.

"Oh, no. I'm really quite selfish. I want you all out of my house and off of my property simply so that I can have him all to myself again."

Without another word, Godric simply scooped me up into his arms and ran out of the house at vampire speed. Once we were outside he _flew_ us away from the manor. Flying was one of the most exhilarating things I've ever experienced—once I got over the initial shock and fear.

As we left the manor far behind us, I realized that I was a terribly lucky girl—even if I was suspicious of this luck. But that would be a worry for another day. Right now I should just be glad that I'm in one relative piece. There would be a few bruises and a conclusion—but one piece none the less.

All the while, however, I knew that this was simply the beginning. My brief bought in captivity wouldn't be my last as far as Russell Edgington was concerned. I only hoped that Talbot might continue to prove himself an ally when the time came down to it. If I could even call him an ally. But as long as I convinced him, somehow, that I would be terrible for Edgington then he would want me gone. Just hopefully not permanently. But Godric would try to prevent that no matter the cost.

It made me wonder, vaguely in my exhaustion, whether or not I would be able to turn into a vampire. I'm a werewolf and a faery—was it even possible? I was technically mortal. (I think.) But I aged far more slowly than the werewolves around me. Would I still be able to shift as a vampire? Would I retain my faery powers (That I knew of?) Or would I simply become a vampire? Maybe it would be a poison or—

"Whatever is troubling you can surely wait for another day," Godric smiled lightly at me. Instead of arguing, as I usually would have, I simply returned his smile.

"Thank you," I said sincerely, resting my head against his chest. His arms tightened ever so slightly around me. I felt safe.


	7. Fleeing the Country

When we arrived back at Eric's house, Godric immediately went upstairs. "I want to make sure you're safe," he addressed me firmly, "please pack your things."

"Where are we going?" I asked, knowing full well that he wasn't going to accept 'no' for an answer. And, quite frankly, I would feel safer somewhere that Debbie and her new pack wasn't aware of. There wasn't much to stop them from coming back. Just Talbot and even if Russell got momentarily distracted, it didn't mean that Debbie would give up so easily.

"Eric and I bought a house in Germany during the second World War."

"You were in the war?"

"Regrettably," he admitted. Ah, so he was on the German's side during the war. I found that that didn't bother me, though. Reaching out, I rested my hand gently on his arm.

"It doesn't matter, you know."

"But it does."

"The past is the past, Godric. You can't go back and change it. The only thing you can do is learn from it. Make your future a better one. And you have all eternity to do that," I smiled lightly. He smiled sadly at me, kissing my forehead before leaving. I stared after him for a few seconds before beginning to pack up my things. By the time I had finished, both Eric and Godric returned to my room. Neither had bags in their hands, but I assumed that they were downstairs.

"I'm glad to see that you're unharmed. Relatively," Eric noted the bruises that were already beginning to form.

I reached up to touch the side of my face. "Uh, Debbie," I said dismissively. "I've had worse, trust me. Just don't let me sleep for awhile. I think she may have given me a concussion."

Eric raised his eyebrows, turning to his maker and speaking in a language I was unfamiliar with. Whatever they were discussing, Godric seemed hesitant to agree to it. I had the distinct feeling that it had to do with me. Mostly because of the fact that they were speaking in another language and Eric kept glancing at me with a look that was a mixture of cocky and knowing. He's always a smug little bastard.

"It's merely a suggestion," Eric concluded the discussion. "Now if you'll excuse me, I think I still have some of Russell's guards on me." He gave me a smirk before retreating from the room. So he had been the company Talbot had been talking about.

"Eric's scheming again?" I broke the silence.

"He seems to think that I should offer you my blood," Godric began lightly.

"It's just a concussion. I've had worse. Besides, it's not like you're my own personal healing fountain."

"You do not want my blood?"

"Oh, I—uh. Oh shit, I'm not good at this." A brief look of amusement crossed his face. "What? You think I'm funny?"

"You are slightly amusing," he grinned at me. I shot him a playful look of anger before zipping up my bag.

"All I'm saying is that you aren't obligated by any forms to give or offer it." He stepped closer, taking the bag from my hands.

"I don't want it to be your deciding factor on me."

"It won't be." I leaned up and kissed his cheek gently. "Trust me." In seconds, my bag was on the floor and I was pinned against the wall, Godric's lips on my own. I hungrily responded, relishing in the simple taste of him.

"I hate to interrupt, but Michael says we should be going soon," Eric announced from the doorway. Godric growled lightly, pulling away and giving his progeny a dirty look. That's all it took for me to start giggling. Both of the vampires looked at me oddly.

"You're tired," Godric stated simply. I nodded, trying to hold back my giggles. Without further prompting, he easily picked both the bag and myself up. Eric turned silently on his heel, leading us down the stairs. Godric easily kept up with him, despite being burdened with me and my things. Typically I would have protested against being carried like a princess. But, honestly, I was tired. And sore. Not to mention that his presence was just so damn soothing. I made a mental note to yell at him for that—just for kicks. The mental image of the confusion on his face made me start giggling again.

Michael and Eric both shot me a concerned look. Well, Michael looked concerned for my well being. Eric looked concerned as if I was going to go insane and start feasting on all of them. That made me wonder if each vampire tasted different from one another. I'm sure that they have to. They don't typically come from the same geographic location or era. Marc had been a newer vampire (only just shy of a hundred) so he hadn't tasted like anything overly exotic. More of a smoked, salty bourbon taste. He had been turned in the 1920's where he had been a part of the mob that kept alcohol flowing steadily around the country during Prohibition. So, naturally, he had smoked frequently, tasted quite his share of bourbon, and lived in Atlantic City. That made for a pretty interesting cocktail.

"Do they make cocktails out of vampire blood?" I asked suddenly.

"I think that werewolf hit you over the head one too many times," Eric muttered.

"She should probably be healed," Michael regarded me. "She's getting somewhat delirious." I frowned at him. Delirious? I felt perfectly fine. Kind of. I just couldn't seem to pin my thoughts down long enough to completely process anything.

"I'm fine," I insisted. "I think Godric must have dropped you on your head as a child, Eric."

"I'll take the bags to the car," he ignored me. Michael nodded, lifting bags to help him. Godric handed him my bag, watching them leave. He looked down at me before gingerly touching the side of my skull where Debbie had inflicted the most wounds.

"You have some internal bleeding." He set me down, steadying my sea-legs by gripping my waist firmly. His fangs dropped, breaking open the pale flesh on his wrist. Hesitantly, he offered me his wrist. Out of sheer curiosity, I accepted it. I found that he did have a different taste than Marc. Godric tasted sweeter but with the distinct tinge of herbs and a faint dusting of salt water. But a purer salt water than Marc's had been. It intrigued me.

When he pulled his wrist away, I felt more alert. I guess I really had been a little fucked up. It had been similar to being drunk and then sobering up and realizing how dumb you must have looked. (Not that I would know, of course. Don't listen to any stories Alcide has to share. They're all false slander and a defamation of character. Even if he claims to have proof. I swear that I have a Doppelganger. Lara Croft has one—why can't I?)

"I guess I was I a little off," I commented after a brief moment of silence. He smiled lightly in amusement.

"Come, we have a plane to catch." Despite being able to walk on my own again, Godric kept his hand firmly on my waist as he led me outside. Michael and Eric grabbed the last of the bags and settled into the driver's and passenger's seats respectively. Godric sat in the back with me.

"I've never been to Germany," I remarked idly. "Is it nice there?"

"The last time I was at this home was when we were part of the _Schutzstaffel_," Eric replied, glancing at me in the rear-view. "I've heard it's changed quite a bit since then. They allow brunettes to roam freely, now."

"Good to know I won't have to go blonde," I chuckled. "I make a terrible blonde. I've tried. More than once." I cringed, remembering the bad hair experiences. "Is it out in the country or in the city?"

"Country. Do you honestly expect a Viking to live in the middle of a city?"

"I dunno. You could always be a city slicker in disguise."

"Hardly."

The rest of the drive was silent. Even the radio remained off. I had been wondering about passports whenever we pulled up to a private section of the airport. Apparently one of my companions had a pilot's license. Which meant that me illegally leaving the country wasn't a problem. The man waiting for us didn't even look like he was legitimately employed through the airline, I noted. When Eric slipped him a wad of cash, my suspicions were confirmed.

Michael and Godric took the bags on board while Eric and I headed into the plane. "I bought this on a whim a few years ago," he offered. "Pam had wanted to take up flying." The thought of Pam in a cute little pink stewardess's outfit didn't surprise me in the least. I pictured it quite well, actually. "So I bought this and told her that she could learn to fly it."

"She didn't stay very interested in it, I take it?"

"Not in the slightest," he grinned at me.

"Lucky for us."

"What's lucky for us?" Michael asked as he and Godric climbed aboard. The door closed behind them.

"That Pam has the attention span of a dragon fly," Eric replied, going to sit in the co-pilot's seat next to Michael. I took one of the window seats, staring out curiously. Of course, I've flown before. But I rather enjoyed it. Oddly enough. Most people are terrified of heights. But I've always loved being at the tops of things. Mountains. Buildings. Planes. Ferris wheels. It didn't really matter what it was as long as it was high above the ground. The thoughts of falling to a very gruesome death below never deterred me from this fascination. It was a fascination that had, more than once, worried my were family.

"You look troubled," Godric noted, sitting down beside me despite the entire cabin being devoid of any other passengers.

"Not particularly," I smiled at him. "I was just thinking how strange it was that I've always had a fascination for heights. Alcide and Jackson always worried that I would end up climbing on something and breaking my neck." I chuckled at the memories. Getting in trouble was something of a specialty of mine. I was very, very good at it. And it seemed to be a talent that I was improving over time. Then again, I guess trouble just has a natural pull toward me. I don't _intentionally_ get in trouble. It just happens.

"You've always been this much of a handful?"

"Not quite worthy of fleeing the country, no. But I've always been a source of worry and a little discomfort."

"But also of great joy, I am sure."

I bit back the urge to disagree and, instead, simply grabbed his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, a thankful smile on my face. Without letting go I resumed my inspection of the ground as it became smaller and smaller. Michael was a fairly decent pilot, I noted. Well, far better than decent, really. But something had been bothering me about him. If he could see the future, why hadn't he seen Debbie, Cooter, and the other were coming to the house? He and the other guards should have very easily been able to out power the three. Even if they had been all hopped up on V.

When Godric pulled gently at my hand, a concerned look crossing his features, I forced a smile and pushed the thoughts as far from the front of my mind as I could. There would be time to contemplate this without worrying Godric, I decided. I finally truly settled in to enjoy the ride.

We arrived in Germany just before dawn, leaving little time for the vampires to do anything. Eric gave us a glance of a tour before showing us our rooms. It was smaller than Eric's home in Shreveport, I noted. This was confirmed when we were informed that there were only three rooms available. They were all, however, light free during the day. Much like the vampire hotel in Texas, Eric had gotten windows that automatically converted to protect the vampires on the premises. Michael was assigned the small guest bedroom. Eric took his usual master suite and then said that he would let Godric and I decide the final arrangements.

Well, that's slightly awkward, I thought as the Viking retreated into his room.

"If it bothers you, I can always stay with Eric," Godric ventured when I was silent. I studied him in contemplation, a slow smile creeping across my face.

"No, that would be silly. It's your home, too. You should at least be comfortable." And not sleeping with your slightly misanthropic son, I added silently. But I couldn't rightfully say anything about being misanthropic. I'm a rather detached person at times, too.

"Your comfort is my main concern."

I frowned at him. "Two-thousand-years-old and you're concerned about _my_ comfort?"

He returned my frown. "Why would I not?"

"Most vampires even a quarter of your age are less than concerned with mortal comforts. I'm just trying to piece together how exactly you can think you're a horrible person when I'm astounded by your kindness."

"I have not always been this kind."

"Somehow, I don't buy that," I shook my head. I glanced out the window at the end of the hallway. The sky was turning a faint tinge of pink. That meant that the sun would be fully risen in another ten minutes or so. "But I suppose that doesn't matter much now. I'm sure we'll continue this conversation later." I turned to face him. "Start grabbing life by the throat a little more. It won't kill you—or make you a horrible person. Demanding what you want from life isn't a crime."

He stepped closer to me, his frame standing quite clearly over mine. "I want to share a room with you." I was acutely aware of how breathless he made me in that instant. How deceptively well sculpted his face was. The way his emerald eyes appeared far lighter than they were.

I forced a smile, speaking lowly: "That's all you had to say."

He bent down, capturing my lips with his own as he easily lifted me into the room behind us. I wrapped my legs around his waist, effectively ridding us of any space that could possibly separate us. Godric gently laid me down on my back, being sure not to put his entire weight on me. His lips soon left mine, roaming around any exposed skin that they could find. When his hands reached for the hem of my shirt, he hesitated. I nodded lightly, kissing him in response.

He didn't need any further convincing.


	8. Psychopathic Cocktail

I woke up in complete darkness, confused entirely until I remembered the events that had taken place yesterday. Godric's bare arm was draped against my waist. It was, for lack of a better term, dead weight since he was unconscious for the remainder of the day. I reached out, letting my fingers trail down his face softly. A smile reached my face as I removed myself from his grasp (with a bit more difficulty than I would like to admit). I threw on some pajamas before going downstairs to make breakfast for myself. I hadn't eaten properly since being abducted by Debbie and her posse.

That meant I was all but famished.

As I went down the stairs, I found that Michael was nowhere to be found. Which was a relief. I wasn't quite sure I could be as friendly as I had been with him given my latest suspicions. Surely they were simply that: suspicions. But I wasn't entirely sure. And I'm often a rather bad judge of character. I like to think that people are, for the most part, kind. I'm often proven wrong. Very, very wrong.

When I entered the kitchen, I found an older woman standing over the stove. She turned to face me when I entered, a warm smile on her face. "You must be Miss Herveaux," she greeted. She had a faint German twinge to her English. "I'm Elissa. Mr. Northman and Master Godric have asked me to see to it that you're comfortable in your stay here."

Within seconds, she had a plate of bacon, scrambled eggs, and toast on the table. I thanked her gratefully and sat down to eat. She sat down herself, nursing a mug of coffee. There was also one of those and a glass of apple juice in front of me. She was a kind woman—somewhere in her fifties, I guessed—and she tried to make conversation as I ate. Reading her brain pattern, I discovered that she was neither human nor shifter. She was a witch. That struck me as something of an oddity. Most witches highly despise vampires for anything other than their blood.

"You're wondering why I work here, aren't you?" Elissa smiled kindly at me.

"Sorry," I said honestly, "but I'm unfamiliar with witches and vampires being able to even tolerate one another."

"I could say the same thing about werewolves and vampires," her eyes sparkled humorously. "But you and Master Godric seem to be getting along quite well." My face tinged a light shade of pink as I bit my lip, an amused smile breaking across my face. "I met them while they were serving here during the Second World War." So she was a little older than she looked. Witches must age more slowly than regular humans. "Natural witches age more slowly," she grinned. "Mr. Northman and Master Godric saved me from being taken away by some of their comrades after my parents were shot. I had been nine at the time, so I was naturally quite terrified." I caught brief flashes of her memories. Her parents had been shot in front of her by one of the members of their trouble That hadn't been part of the plan and, for some reason, it had upset the vampires. "But they simply told me that I was free to leave once the other men had moved on from the home. I didn't have anywhere to go then. My mother's sister had already been a casualty of war and my father's brother had disowned our family for being sympathizers. When they found this out, they invited me to live here with them. Now of course they were barely here because of the war and the fact that sunlight was a little bit of a problem for them. But I didn't mind. They were always very kind and generous to me. Eric even had my own small home built in the back of the property. It wasn't until they had both moved to the United States that I began using it, though." She took a sip of her coffee. "It's been quite awhile since they've been in Germany together. They had had an awful fight the last time they were here."

I tilted my head slightly, interested in this piece of information. It would explain why Godric and Eric weren't as chummy as most makers and progenies tended to be. I sipped my coffee, silently urging her to go on.

"I don't know the specifics, to be honest, but it had involved something to do with their blood." She frowned. "I believe that Eric had given his to someone Godric disapproved of."

"Godric believes in the purity of their blood," I supplied. "He hasn't told me directly, but I can tell simply by how he reacts whenever Eric suggests giving blood to anyone. Even giving it to me caused some hesitance," I chuckled. "But I suppose that was another reason." The smile disappeared from my face as I frowned in thought. I wondered exactly what had transpired between the two to cause such a fracture in their relationship. They had that natural draw to one another that most makers and progenies have but it did seem rather distant. Instantly, the problem solver in me was thinking of ways to fill that little ridge. Surely there was something the two could bond over. Again.

The majority of my day was spent learning some German phrases from Elissa. I had only known her for less than a day, but I was entirely sure that I liked her. Her intentions were pure and she had no desire to be anywhere other than she currently was. Something told me that she never had after the day she had met Godric and Eric. Before either of us realized it, both of the vampires were roaming the house freely. Michael had stumbled downstairs, apparently having stayed in his room sleeping all day. His brain was locked down tighter than any other I had seen, however. That just made me all the more suspicious.

"Is there a phone I can use?" I asked the vampires suddenly. Work. I was supposed to be in to work in an hour. How the hell was that going to work when I was in Germany? Simple: it wasn't. That meant I at least had to give Sam a courtesy call.

"You can use my cell phone," Eric nodded. "It's untraceable. Just don't tell anyone where you are."

"I'm not that daft," I grumbled, punching in Merlotte's number. Sam answered on the fourth ring.

"Merlotte's, this is Sam speaking," he sounded stressed.

"Sam, it's Aline," I greeted him.

"Aline," he sounded relieved. "Where have you been? We've all been worried sick about you."

That thought touched me. The people in Shreveport and Bon Temps were sweet, for the most part. I wouldn't mind living there full time. "I know, I'm sorry," I apologized.

"It doesn't matter as long as you're okay. You are okay, right?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Something just came up. I'll be away for awhile."

"How long is awhile?"

"I'm not sure yet. I wish I could have given you more notice, but—"

"Don't worry about it," he chastised me. "Whenever you come back, you can tell me all about it. Just come back. A good waitress is hard to come by." I smiled on the other end. "I gotta go, a tourist bus just pulled in."

"Alright, take care, Sam."

"If you need anything, you know where to find me. I don't need specifics. Just know that I'm here. And Sookie would bend over backwards for you, too."

"That means a lot to me, Sam, it really does."

"You're a good person, Aline. Stay safe." He hung up. I hung up the phone, resting my chin on my knees. I hadn't thought about how much I would be missing the people I had made friends with, however brief our friendship was.

After a few moments, I returned Eric's phone to him. I immediately turned and went upstairs to the room Godric and I shared. The sound of the shower running in our room informed me that he was in the shower. I sat on the bed, staring out at the ocean. It was a beautiful sight, really. Much prettier than I had expected Northern Germany to be. I wondered if Alcide and Jackson knew where I was. Calling them wasn't on the top of my list of things to do. Somehow I knew that one or both of them would be on the first plane over here. And that would be suspicious. They don't usually leave the country—and I'm pretty sure that Debbie would have given Edgington a detailed report of my life. Unless Talbot had distracted the madman as he had promised. Somehow I doubted that someone like Edgington could really be that deterred. He was a pretty insistent man. And insane, apparently.

"You are worried," Godric noted. I hadn't even heard him come out of the shower. There was a frown on his face, a shirt in his hands. He had been out here for awhile, having gotten partially dressed without me even acknowledging his presence.

"Sorry," I tried to force a smile. It must have looked more like a grimace because he pulled the shirt on, sitting beside me. He was silent, leaving the option to start the conversation up to me. "I was thinking about Alcide and our father. Do they know?"

"Eric thought it would be unwise to inform them," Godric confirmed my reasoning. "They would more than likely come here to try to protect you. And that might make Russell suspicious if he is aware of your familial ties."

"Which I can imagine he is since Debbie is one of his minions." I frowned. "I don't want them to worry. But I know that if they don't worry, they'll be suspicious then, too. And I can't risk them knowing something. Who knows what that bat shit crazy vampire would do." I scowled. "I just hope Talbot is good to his word."

"He seems to be for now. But that was my first time meeting him."

"Only time will tell, then." He said nothing, simply drawing me closer to him and placing a gentle kiss on the top of my head. The ring of the doorbell caused me to pull away in confusion, meeting his equally as confused eyes. We descended the stairs just as Eric moved to answer the door. Godric deliberately kept me behind him as a form of protection.

Eric opened the door to reveal a rather disgruntled looking Pam. "Germany, Eric? You leave the country and don't even have the decency to let me know." She walked by him, her eyes landing on me. "Sharing your pet now?"

Instantly, my eyes narrowed at her. I fought back the growl in the back of my throat just barely. Godric's hand found mine, overwhelming me with a sense of tranquility. That bastard was sending emotions through our bond. I smirked, sending my irritation back through it. A chuckle escaped his lips. "I warned you," I said simply. He shrugged, a smile on his face.

"What the _fuck_ is going on here?"

"Aline is not my," Eric's eyes landed on me as his mouth curved into a smirk, "_pet_. She was put in my charge as a form of protection."

"Protection? From _what_?" She wrinkled her nose. "What smells like wet dog?"

"I resent that," I snapped at her. Maybe I'd get to test my vampire flavor theory more thoroughly tonight. Godric shot me a look. He was clearly unamused by my amusement. That just made me grin darkly at the blonde vampire woman, who took a startled step back.

"Mind your manners, Pamela," Eric chuckled. "Aline is Alcide's sister. The vampire Marc was her former boyfriend. He died selling her out to Edgington."

"You're risking your life for a _wolf_? Have you gone totally _insane_?"

"I owed Jackson a favor."

"Enough to warrant this?"

"No, but now he is in my debt."

"So let me get this straight, you're protecting Little Red Riding Hood from the big bad, crazy vampire because some construction worker deserved a favor from you?"

The growl I had been holding back escaped. Her blue eyes darted to me, an amused smirk on her face. I did not like the way that she was speaking of my father. It made me want to sink my teeth into her pretty white flesh even more. "Godric, please keep Aline from eating my progeny," Eric said dismissively. Then he turned to Pam. "Respect Aline," he chastised to my surprise. Pam was clearly taken aback as well. Her maker was stick up for me? Fuck yes. "She intrigued me and now that she is bonded to Godric, it is my duty to protect her. That means it's also yours."

"I didn't agree to this," she protested angrily.

"You did when you came demanding answers. Honestly, Pam, you should know better than to expect simplicity."

"I keep forgetting that you like to be in and around trouble at all times. What about Fangtasia?"

"I have full confidence that you can run Fangtasia in my absence."

"Well isn't that just fucking peachy." She shot a look at me, trying to clearly see what was so special about me. Godric's hand tightened on my own, causing me to poke him sharply to remind him that I was, for the greater majority, still breakable. He relaxed, but his gaze stayed hardened on Pam. Eventually she glanced away from her maker's maker. Eric then led her out of the room, conversing in Swedish.

Godric stared after her until he could no longer see them. I had no doubts, however, that he could quite clearly hear them. "Uhm, Godric," I brought him out of his staring contest with the empty doorway. His green eyes snapped to focus on my blue ones. "Can you loosen your grip a bit?"

"Sorry," he apologized, immediately inspecting my hand for damage. The light bruising that would have appeared instantly went away thanks to his blood that was still in my system. He rubbed my knuckles, placing a gentle kiss on the back of my hand.

"You don't trust her." Since it wasn't a question, a simple nod was all I received in return. I nodded in agreement. Pam didn't strike me as the type that would save my skin if it meant harming her own. And she certainly wouldn't pick me over Eric. But there was a certain fear in regarding Godric from her. She seemed to clearly remember the vampire he had been before I had existed. Some day, I would have to snag those memories from someone. I was rather curious about them. But I have a morbid sense of curiosity. Hey, I'd like to see anyone that comes out normal when surrounded by werewolves and vampires twenty-four-seven. Trust me, it doesn't happen. Ever. At least not that I've found. Even if you _aren't_ a werewolf and you hang around them, there's at least a little bit of a morbid curiosity that becomes embedded in your mindset. Those that hang around vampires are a little (just a little) less gruesome, usually. Vampires value privacy more than weres. It's why we're more prone to be caught walking around naked, I think. (That and replacing clothes becomes a pain. They tend to tear easily when we shift if we don't remove them first.)

"I'm sorry," he apologized again, but his eyes clearly stated that his mind was elsewhere. I frowned at him, shaking my head.

"Don't be," I reprimanded. "You don't think she's going to throw me under the bus, do you?"

Godric gave me a reassuring smile, patting my arm comfortingly. But saying nothing. The fact that he was saying nothing was what worried me. I made a resolve to have a little chat with Eric the next time the opportunity presented itself.

Pam ended up staying in Germany so long that the sun had already risen in Shreveport. That meant she was spending the night here. If I hadn't been wary of her already, I would have been after seeing her reaction to the fact that Godric and I had the spare master suit. I've never heard a vampire make that noise of exasperated frustration before. It was something like a dying cat—except that this cat was on steroids and some sort of hallucinogenic. So, instead, she kicked Michael out of his room. The man took it in stride—not really having a choice anyway.

And then made her dislike for me crystal clear. Well, _two_ could play that game, sweetheart.

This is what led me to angrily taking a brush through my long, choppy dark hair and ignoring just about everything else. Even Godric couldn't get me to spare a few words in his direction. By the time I was calm enough to even talk to anyone, it was almost noon. Godric had fallen asleep in the chair behind me, patiently watching and waiting for me to be open to speaking.

Despite knowing that he couldn't see me, I gave him a saddened, sympathetic look on my way out of the room. Elissa was, once again, in the kitchen. But this time she was reading the paper with a frown. She looked up at me in concern. "Oh, honey, you look awful," she observed.

"Gee thanks, Elissa," I muttered, getting out the ingredients for a sandwich.

"Here, let me—"

"No, thanks," I cut her off.

"Miss Pam got under your skin a little, didn't she?"

"A little? No, grilled cheese gets under my skin a little. _She_ made me want to snap her fake little neck with my teeth." I accidentally put the knife through the slice of bread in my hand at that admission. It quite easily sliced through my skin. "Oh—fucking son of a bitch!"

Instantly, Elissa was pulling some glass vials out of one of the cupboards and leading me to the sink. She washed the wound before splashing a bit of one of the vials on it. It was instantly healed.

"What was that?"

"An old family recipe," she winked at me. "Nothing too exotic but it will cure small wounds like that. It was one of the first things I learned to brew as a witch. Eric is an excellent maker—but a rather piss poor guardian for the living." She chuckled before smiling at me. "He has improved over the past few decades, I see."

"He just hires people to do that dirty work for him," I laughed.

"He looked rather upset last night," she ventured. "What exactly happened?"

"Pam can't deal with my presence," I shrugged. "She was especially upset that she had to take the guest bedroom."

"And that would be why Michael was on the couch this morning."

"Speaking of, where is he?"

"I believe he went out for a morning run. But then again that was several hours ago. I'm not entirely sure where he is now."

"That doesn't strike you as odd?"

"I don't know him well enough." I was silent, ruminating a bit on this information. "It worries you."

"There's just something about him. I don't know what it is. But I don't trust it."

"He doesn't seem to have a hidden agenda. But I wouldn't really know him as well as you." She paused. "Out of curiosity, what is he? He can't be human if he's been hired as your protection."

"I'm not sure," I admitted. "Nothing I've ever come across before." I glanced at the calendar. "The full moon is soon?"

"Next weekend."

Slowly, a plan began forming in my mind. The full moon is a pull for all shifters. No matter how much we may not wish to shift, we simply _must_ shift at least for a few hours on the night of a full moon. The moon offers a completely primal form of energy, drawing us in with the promise of nothing more than feeling absolutely alive and unstoppable. Images of my pack hunting flashed before my eyes. If I had had a weak stomach, the sandwich I had just consumed would have been all over Elissa. But, thankfully, I've never been one to shy around blood, gore, and destruction. Maybe it was my werewolf nature—or even the fae blood—but I never had problems with it. Some weres need to get used to the idea of hunting. Or eating the former packmaster when he is overthrown. (A particular rite that I've refused to take part in. Alcide never has, either. Eating one of our own just crosses one of the very few lines I have in place. And, trust me, I don't have very many lines drawn. But I don't have to walk away as Alcide does.)

So, in short, I'm something of a little psychopathic cocktail waiting to observe the world's destruction. It's really no wonder I tend to surround myself with the supernatural over human company. Humans have too many reservations. Good. Evil. Nothing is ever really that simple. As these thoughts progressed, I realized something. Maybe I was judging Pam too quickly. I still really, really wanted to inflict bodily harm upon her. But I wasn't really looking at it from her angle. Technically I _was _encroaching on her territory. She's been the only woman in their lives for so long. I mean, of course Elissa has been here, but Eric didn't show as much of an interest in her. That was something more akin to guilt. He was forced to have an interest in me because of my father. But lately he had been taking that job to an above and beyond standard. It couldn't be easy to be the pampered little apple of your maker's eye and have some odd little hybrid come along and steal his attention. Naturally some of this blame shifts to Godric from her since I, well, am his in vampire terms.

I objected to this terminology once—but, honestly, is it any different than referring to him as _my_ boyfriend? Technically I am claiming him. Just in a less permanent way. But when you've been around for thousands of years, the only thing left is permanence.

With these thoughts, I told Elissa I would be upstairs resting since I had skipped sleep. Godric was still in the same chair I had left him in. He looked so peaceful there. It was easy to see why Eric loved him so much. Even in sleep he looked kind. I crawled into bed, falling into a light and restless sleep. Aggravated, I looked over at Godric again. A slow smile spread across my face. I took one of the blankets with me as I crawled into the chair with him.

Hey, the man makes a pretty comfortable pillow. In seconds, I was asleep.

The gentle feeling of fingers being run through my hair lured me out of my slumber. I grinned. "Morning," I said, my voice muffled by his shirt. He chuckled.

"Good morning," he returned. "Did you sleep well?"

"You're far more comfortable than the bed." I looked up at him. "How well do you know Pam?"

"You're still angry?"

"Not exactly," I shook my head. "I'm just curious. I was talking to Elissa earlier and I got to thinking." His brows furrowed in confusion.

"Who is Elissa?"

"Elissa—the woman you and Eric saved from the war."

"Aline, she died nearly twenty years ago." I stared at him, pulling away from his embrace to stand up. I glanced outside at the house that Elissa had said she was staying in.

"No, that's not possible. I cut my finger this morning and she put something on it to heal it. She made me breakfast yesterday."

"That is not possible."

"What color were her eyes?" I asked, a picture of Elissa's slate grey eyes at the forefront of my mind.

"They were brown." A chill washed over me, my face visibly paling. Godric stood over me in worry.

"Who have I been speaking to then?"

* * *

_Thank you so much to **treewitch703**, **Beatrix**, and **downbelowgirl** for the reviews! (And everyone who has subscribed!) :)_

_~ Lynn_


	9. A Possibility Confirmed Part 1

When Godric simply stared at me, visibly at a loss for any explanation, I tore away from his gaze and rushed downstairs. Pam had to sidestep to get out of my way. "Well excuse me," she grumbled. I ignored her, deciding that I had bigger things to worry about. I went straight for the cabinet, throwing it open. About five or so of the bottles that Elissa had shown me remained. The rest had disappeared. "What the fuck?" I gaped.

"What happened to my dishes?" Eric questioned. "If you didn't like them, I would have gladly gotten a new set." I turned to face him, discovering that he had a handful of broken dishes.

"Where did you get that?"

"Outside—"

I was out the door before he could process the rest of his sentence. As I looked around outside, I heard him exchanging words with Godric and Pam. They were all worried that I had gone certifiably insane. I'm not _that _much of a psychopath. I swear.

A small rock caught my eye. I picked it up, studying it. Though it was small, it gave off a tangible heat, instantly warming me. The gemstone had a light pink color. It perplexed me. Eventually I wandered back into the house. All three vampires were standing there staring at me. Godric looked concerned. Eric looked torn between amusement and irritation at having found his dishes in pieces. And Pam just looked annoyed with her arms crossed.

"What?"

"I think I speak for all of us when I say that I want to know what the _fuck _is going on," Pam offered in response.

"I have no idea," I replied with a frown. "Anyone know what this is?"

Pam rolled her eyes, holding out her hand. I handed it to her, watching as she inspected it. Handing it back, she replied: "Morganite."

I wrinkled my nose. What the hell was _Morganite_? Just as I was about to question this, Michael walked in the door. "Oh, uh, hey what's up?" he attempted lamely.

"Was there a woman in the house today?" Eric questioned, his ice blue eyes narrowed dangerously. Michael looked at him, confusion crossing his face. I let my guard down, listening intently to his thoughts. They were blank.

"He was glamoured." My voice held nothing but pure awe. Vampires couldn't glamour the supernatural—what the _hell_ was Elissa. If that was even her name. I doubted that it was, honestly. That was probably just the most logical choice. Right?

"No, I wasn't," Michael protested, searching his mind for any recollection of it. When he couldn't remember, his face fell. His eyes landed on the two eldest vampires. "What could have done this?"

"A Fae can glamour even us," Godric mused, his eyes flicking to Eric. The Viking's face registered astonishment.

"You don't think," he began, trailing off in disbelief.

"I do."

"Think what?" Pam asked, pure irritation in her voice.

"What did Elissa look like?"

"Rather tall, her hair was dark but it was beginning to grey, and her eyes were nearly silver," I recollected. "Why? What's going on?"

"The vials." Eric grabbed one and handed it to him. Godric opened it to study it cautiously. "Michael, come here, please." Michael obediently stood before Godric. "May I?"

Despite looking like he earnestly wanted to refuse, the unknown shifter nodded. Godric flicked his nail against Michael's skin, causing small droplets of blood to form. Eric didn't bat an eye, but Pam suddenly looked slightly uncomfortable. Godric poured a few drops from the bottle on Michael's wound. It healed instantly, just as mine had.

"Faerie tears," Godric confirmed. "This woman only appears during the day?" I nodded. "I believe she may be a relative of yours."

"As in faerie relative?" I questioned.

"Yes."

"You don't think she's working for Edgington, do you?"

"No," Eric disagreed. "Faeries and vampires do not work together. It would end rather grievously for both sides."

"Okay, forgive me, I'm pretty ignorant about faerie things. Other than the fact that we're telepaths. And a few other oddities." They stared at me. "Jackson is pretty ignorant on faerie culture."

"He's not alone in that. Faeries don't exactly like sharing their secrets."

"Even I do not know much more than you have mentioned," Godric nodded. I held up the Morganite.

"Then what the fuck is this?" Pam opened her mouth to speak and I shot her a look. "And I don't mean what it's called. I mean, what does it do? Why is it here? And why the fuck is it so warm?"

Godric winced almost imperceptibly. It dawned on me that I wasn't the only one dealing with the backlash of my emotions any more. He could easily feel them through both the claim and his blood that was inside me. With a great effort, I calmed my anger to a dull simmer. Then again, he was probably also sending some sort of calming effect through the bond. But I'd much rather think it was all my doing. Werewolves. We're prideful little things.

I had been so wrapped up in my musings about Godric that I had failed to notice that Michael suddenly looked rather nervous. His eyes were glued to the little rock in my hand. I cocked an eyebrow at him. He knew something. And he was _going_ to speak. "Okay, whatever the fuck you are, spill it," I narrowed my gaze at him. "Who is Elissa?"

The man visibly jumped, staring at me in shock and confusion. "Elissa? I do not recall meeting anyone—"

Before anyone could stop me, a low growl escaped from my throat and my arm was pressed against my bodyguard's throat. I knew from the way that he was staring at my eyes that they were that gleaming, golden yellow that werewolves possess when their anger overrides human emotions. Or when they're about to shift into their wolf form. Right now, it was a mixture of both for me. I very badly wanted to shift and rip out his intestines and eat them. He was proving my suspicions about him to be correct—and doing nothing to help the slightly stir crazy pull I felt from the moon.

Godric easily came and pried me off of Michael, holding me firmly against him, my arms crossed helplessly over my chest. I could have yelled, kicked, and otherwise struggled to break free but I knew it would be useless. Even younger vampires were known to quite easily win fights against full-blooded werewolves. They out power us. That's all there is to it. (But don't tell a werewolf this. They'll vehemently deny it. We possess hubris to an extreme fault in most cases. I like to think that the heavy dose of fae blood in me balances that out. But that could also just be my pride talking. It's a real _Catch-22 _situation, here.)

"Look, it's not that simple," Michael began. Before I could even contemplate trying to break out of Godric's vice-like grip, Eric was pushing the shifter against the wall with such force that I was surprised he wasn't going through it. Pam actually looked vaguely interested in the events unfolding.

"You have lied to me," Eric said calmly, though I could feel the chill that laced his voice. It sent a shiver down my spine, causing Godric to pull me closer to him as a source of comfort. A brief thought flitted through my mind, wondering how on earth I had been lucky enough to land a guy like him. He quite easily defied most standards set by men. In a very good way. "You've seen what I do to people who lie to me."

"Trust me, it's not pretty," Pam volunteered. "And it would be such a shame to mess up that pretty little face of yours."

Despite the pressure being exerted upon his face, he frowned. "You would be surprised what illusions walk amongst you," he replied. Eric growled, pushing his face against the wall until there was an audible crack and the dry wall spider-webbed up to about a foot from where Michael's head had indented it.

"That's not an acceptable answer," Eric replied simply.

"He won't be any use to us dead," Godric mused with a frown.

"He's not really any use to us alive, either." More pressure. "If you were a mortal, you would be dead by now." Without any further warning, Eric bashed Michael's head against the corner of the expensive marble countertop. I couldn't suppress the surprised squeak that flew from my mouth. His blue eyes glazed over, his mouth slack, as he sagged to the floor. Dead weight. Blood began to pour from his head, collecting in a crimson pool on the snow white floor.

"I warned you," Pam rolled her eyes. The blood slowly began retreating within Michael's head. That dull, white film disappeared from his eyes. And life popped back into his face as he stood up, cracking his neck back into place. "What the _fuck_?"

My thoughts exactly, Pam. I stared with my jaw slack.

"Well, I guess I _have _to explain that," Michael admitted. He turned to Eric. "Nicely played, Mr. Northman. I knew you were persistent and reckless—but I underestimated you." I noticed that there was a slight shift to his voice. The tone was far more official. The tone of someone who was used to being in access to a higher power. Before I could finish that thought, he looked me in the face. "Do you believe in God, Miss Herveaux?"

That wasn't the question I was expecting. "Not exactly," I answered honestly. "I do not believe in a Christian god, if that is what you're referring to."

"That is but one of many gods," he nodded approvingly. "Angels?"

"A possibility." A wry smile cracked his face.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Godric inquired, his brows furrowed. His patience was tiring. I grasped at his arm with the little leverage I could gain from my constriction. His restraint loosened, allowing me to freely offer a small form of comfort.

"Morganite is a gemstone often used by those of supernatural nature to make contact with angels and other divine beings," Michael ignored him. "It is very often used by practitioners of the craft or faeries bearing some alignment to the element of water." I shifted impatiently. "In this case, I believe that it was an aid for this Alice—"

"Elissa," I corrected.

"—to glamour me." The information sunk in.

"You're an _angel_?"

"An archangel, if we're going to be technical about it."

"You're _the_ Michael?"

"I suppose so."

"Wha—ho—whe—huh—_why_?"

"Why am I here?"

I nodded.

"I have been sent as protection for you." I stared at him doubtfully.

"You expect me to believe that I'm important enough to warrant the protection of an angel sent by some god?"

"No, because that is untrue. We are more concerned about how you will effect the world and its fate. You were supposed to be with Marc the night that he was abducted." The memory of that night flashed to the forefront of my mind.

"We had gotten in a fight that night. Usually I didn't let that interfere with our plans, but Debbie had put Alcide in a pretty foul mood," I recalled. "So I went over to his house for the night." Marc had never known where I was that night. Being a telepath had taught me how to shut people out—emotionally, mentally, and supernaturally.

"He never knew where you were that night," Michael nodded. "Had you stayed with him that evening, you would not be standing here today. Russell's men would have drained you from sheer excitement." Godric growled, clearly displeased with that information. "Your fate changed moments before these events were set to carry out. And, consequently, it changed the fates of many others. But we do not know why. There is some information that not even the gods are privy to."

"I'm still lost as to _why_ you're protecting me," I frowned. "I mean, I get that fate changing is probably a pretty big deal to people who are so used to having absolute control—but it can't be that big of a deal."

"Bigger than you can see right now." He frowned. "I cannot tell you any more." He glanced at Eric. "I am sorry that I deceived you, Mr. Northman, but I was under orders. Hopefully you understand."

"I suppose that I don't have a choice," Eric replied evenly, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "Just keep in mind that torturing immortals is a favorite past time of mine."

The archangel cracked a smile. "I will keep that in mind."

* * *

_Thank you so much to **ozlady80** for reviewing EVERY chapter within such a short period of time! Made my morning to wake up to so many notifications. :)_

_Also, thank you **Jupiter Water Goddess**, **downbelowgirl**, **treewitch703**, and **OrangePlasticGummyBear **for taking the time to review as well! (Especially those of you who are continuing to review as the story progresses.) Cliche, yes, but all of you are helping to keep my very ADD riddled mind focused on completing this.  
_

_More revelations and confrontations to come with the next chapter. ;)  
_

_~ Lynn  
_


	10. A Possibility Confirmed Part 2

Dawn came slowly the next morning, the events of the last few hours heavy in my mind. I was currently seated on a ratty old chair in the guest house, the morganite being turned over and over again in my palm. Just as I was about to give up my vigil, the air chilled. It chilled in the same way that heavy snow chills you to the bone. Wet, heavy, suffocating, and _freezing_. There was even a faint mist that suspiciously resembled snow in the air as "Elissa" appeared with a small, defining _pop_.

"Good morning," I said evenly. The woman was visibly startled. It was then that I took in her appearance in full. Her long, curly dark hair was pinned to the top of her head—not a trace of grey in sight—and her features were decisively far more pointed than I'd ever seen possible in human genetics. As her mouth opened in surprise I got a glimpse of very pointed teeth. Goddamn faeries. It figures that they show up in my life wrapped up in a nice little bundle of deceit. My eyes narrowed further at the thought.

"Aline," she quickly changed her shape to the one I was more familiar with, "what are you doing here? How long have you been here?"

"Oh, a few hours," I replied vaguely. That was a lie. I had gone straight here after Michael's reveal and refused to move from this perch. Godric had taken my makeshift stake from me, insisting that faeries couldn't be staked. Well, he hadn't so much taken it for me being ignorant about the inner workings of faerie, but rather for the fact that I nearly destroyed Pam. Eric had been less than pleased about that. (But secretly I knew he was amused that I stood up to her. I took it that not many mortal women did or would.)

"Save it," I snapped. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

She stared at me, dropping the charade with a frown. The form she chose to take was more aligned with her true form. (What I assume was her true form.) Except her features were less pointed and more pleasing to the human eye. "What gave me away?"

"I was entirely convinced that Michael wanted my head on a platter for Edgington," I spoke calmly, despite the heavy urge to claw her clear into the ground. Even if she were in bloody shreds on the floor, I'm not sure I would be satisfied. I do not take being crossed very kindly. Even less so to pointless illusions. Marc and I had many fights on this manner. He seemed to think that because I was not vampire he could pull one over on me every once in awhile. I always made sure to remind him that, while I wasn't vampire, I most certainly was a supernatural being and wouldn't fall for his bullshit. There was more blood on my hands for and from him than I will ever honestly admit. Weres run hot. Temperatures and temperaments, as I've always joked around with Alcide. He fervently, vainly denies his temper. Liar.

"No," she said quickly, "Michael wishes no harm upon you. I'm sorry if I caused him any suspicion." There was a gentle honesty to her voice. And also a hesitancy.

"Then why did you cause suspicion?" A better question: "Who _are_ you?"

"My name is Nahla and I have been sent by your father."

"My father?"

"From the faerie realm."

"There's a faerie _realm_?"

"Why of course," she looked startled, "it was created after the vampires nearly drove us into extinction thousands of years ago." She shook her head. "It always baffles me how you younger hybrids so willingly run off into the open fangs of vampires. They could drain you, you know."

"I could stake them, you know," I shot back. Vampires get a bad rep. Okay, some of them deserve it. Like Edgington. But some weres aren't much better off. Like Debbie.

"The were blood in you is strong," she frowned. "I'm afraid he may have sent me too late." I ignored the remark.

"What does he want, anyway?"

"Your help." I gave her a doubtful look. "I swear that is all that has been asked of you. That and he would like to meet you. You're raising quite a fuss in our realm. Nearly as much as your friend in Bon Temps."

"Forgive me if I don't believe you, _Nahla_, but up until five minutes ago, I thought your name was Elissa and that you were a pet Eric and Godric picked up on the street." I didn't care how degrading that was—or how questionable it made my relationship with them. But, on a technicality, my father was paying them to be my friends. Ouch. My ego stings a little bit. (Not really. I like to think that I know them a _little_ better than that. Just a little.)

"I understand your hesitancy," she reached out and grabbed my hand gently. She forced a memory into the forefront of my mind. A rather handsome man came to mind, asking for my help. He seemed distraught about something. Clearly asking me was breaking his pride. It was definitely a last result to reach out for me. He hadn't even known how other than to get someone to gain my trust. It was good to know that he at least understood abandonment makes someone an angsty creature for the rest of their life. "But I implore you to think this through. Your father has no other allies to turn to. And you possess skills unique to our realm."

Her grey eyes were pleading, open and honest. Part of me wanted to throw her hand off of me and tell her to go deep throat a cactus or two. But there was also part of me that was honestly curious about what message she was carrying. And, after all, doesn't everybody tell you _not_ to kill the messenger? Not that I really ever listen to anyone—but it's never too late to start. Right?

"When would you need me to leave," I asked. Her eyes lit up, I ripped my hand from her grasp, holding it up. "I'm not saying that I'll help. I just want all of the facts before I jump in blindly."

"As soon as possible," she admitted.

"As soon as darkness falls?"

"I cannot be around when the vampires wake," she shook her head. "I'm not sure that I would survive."

"They aren't murderers," I sneered at her. She shot me a pained look. I was lying and I knew it. But they didn't kill without some kind of warrant. And, besides pissing me off and worrying them (as if Pam can get worried), Nahla hadn't done anything wrong. Nothing wrong enough to warrant her murder anyway.

"I didn't mean that. It's not something that they can help. They are able to restrain themselves around you because you have an impeccable way of shutting down parts of yourself. I wasn't even sure that we had found the right person at first. But you have his pride through and through." She smiled proudly at me. "You are special Aline. Even the misguided gods above us know it."

"So I would have to leave now, then?"

"If you truly wish to help your father." A pause. "And the rest of us." I stared at her before groaning.

"How long will it take?"

"It should only take a few hours. I promise you this." There was such raw, earnest hope in her voice that I knew I would never be able to turn her away. Fuck.

"Why the fuck am I such a nice person? I wish I was more like Pam. And Debbie. I'd tell you all to go fuck yourselves." I shot her a dark look. The fairy before me looked caught between being offended and completely gleeful. I tend to have that effect on people. It's a talent—I know.

"You'll come with me, then?"

"Unfortunately. Just let me leave a note." I got up to leave but paused, my hand resting on the ancient doorknob. "What did you do to Michael anyway?"

"He would have stopped me," she grinned. "So I just glamoured him into thinking that he has to go watch over a pack of geese at the waterline until dusk." I stared at her for a few seconds before leaving her alone. My feet carried me slowly back to the silent house.

"Well, at least I know where I get that irrational sense of humor from. Faeries are peculiar little buggers," I grumbled. After a little searching, I found a pen and paper and scrawled a note for Godric, mostly. Eric was included as a courtesy. And Pam was simply given the instruction to stay out of my clothes if I wasn't back before dark. As for Michael? I left him some wicked instructions for a mixed drink. Maybe it would burn out that faerie magic that was wreaking havoc on his psyche. Doubtful. But, come on, who doesn't want to come home to a wasted archangel? I certainly wouldn't pass up the opportunity to see that.

I took the opportunity to change into more flexible clothes—ones that I wasn't too particularly attached to. When I went outside, Nahla was shifting from foot to foot nervously. She held out a hand to me. I gave her a long look before taking it within my own. A strange, ice cold tug plucked me from my spot on the ground.

By the time I had gained my wits about me again, we were standing near a lake. Well, several lakes. They were scattered across the land in varying temperaments. The one we were next to appeared to be within the season of fall—just before the first snowfall of the year. There were some covered in snow (but the water was unfrozen). Others were nearly golden from the sunlight pouring over them.

Nahla gently tugged at my hand. "Come, we have places to be." She never let go of my hand, keeping me rather close. I would have told her to keep her hands to herself if people weren't staring at me like I was made of diamonds or something. What am I? The lost child of Zeus or something? Ha. Yeah, right. Zeus was never really quiet about his lays and conquests. The whole world would know who I was if I were his long lost spawn.

We navigated through the lakes, then hill tops, and finally through a large wrought iron gate. The guards gave Nahla a curt nod, opening the doors without prompting. She didn't wait for them to be completely open before ushering me through. This whole getting dragged around bit was getting old fast. Soon enough, I was going to dig my heels into the ground and refuse to move. The thought had barely entered my mind when we walked through the front doors of the large castle behind the gates.

"Sir Kaelin has been awaiting your arrival," a woman hurried over to us. She didn't wait for any acknowledgment before turning and walking down a hallway away from us. Nahla followed with me in tow. We stopped before a large ornate silver door. The woman turned to the two of us. "I warn you that he has been a bit emotional today. Do not take it personally if you get a little frostbitten." She scurried away before I could present any questions.

"In due time," Nahla said smoothly, throwing open the doors. The tall, handsome man I had seen in her memory stood with his back to us. Unruly curly dark hair fell just above his shoulders, which were clad in heavy blue material. Most of the people around the castle were dressed in the same fabric. It must be part of the official code of conduct for the noble.

When the door closed, he glanced over his shoulder. Only when he noticed that Nahla was not alone did he turn around. He was tall—far taller than myself. Perhaps even taller than Eric. And his eyes were about three shades lighter than my eyes. A feat I did not think possible. They were so light that the blue orbs could be mistaken for white upon first glance. His features were well sculpted, as were Nahla's. I had a funny feeling that they all had overly pointed features that they usually kept dulled down to a minimum. It made me trust them just a little less. Not because they _look _different, but because they wish so very badly to hide it.

"Aline," he said softly. "I did not think that you would come, my daughter."

"Guess it's a good thing Mom's genes won, huh?"

"A jab I deserved." He glanced to Nahla. "I would like to speak to her alone." Nahla gave my shoulder a reassuring squeeze before letting herself out. I imagined her standing outside the doorway waiting patiently.

Kaelin walked toward a small table on the other side of the room. Pulling out a seat, he motioned to it for me before taking the one opposite of it. I grudgingly sat down, my arms crossed over my chest.

"How much has Nahla told you about why I've summoned you?"

"Not much. Just that you need some help and I have special powers, blah blah blah." An amused flash crossed his face.

"So a very vague summary. I'm surprised that she got you here on that little."

"It was mostly a guilt trip laced with curiosity."

"I will be sure to indulge your curiosity at a later date," he nodded. "As for now, there is some political business I would like to discuss with you."

I set aside my pride and reservations, leaning forward to clasp my hands upon the table. "All ears."

"Lately there has been some warring within the Otherworld. Maab—Queen of the Light—seems to believe that everyone of fae blood should be gathered up and brought into our realm. This would be followed by varying mating rituals to keep our population growing. She has been on a warpath with vampires ever since they nearly drove us to extinction so many years before."

"And I'm supposed to do what, exactly?"

"Your godmother," he motioned to the doorway Nahla had exited through, "has been watching you for years. Keeping an eye on you for me. She has been telling me of your consorts with other supernatural beings. Mostly peaceful encounters. But there is a will in you like none I've ever seen. Even your mother was not as willful as you are. Perhaps that is because you have inherited my own faults in addition to hers." He paused, staring absentmindedly at the bookshelf across the room.

"What am I supposed to do?" I repeated, irritation in my voice.

"Convince her, perhaps, that we could live in coexistence with vampires."

"How the hell am I supposed to do that? Some of them want me _dead_. No, they want me worse than dead. They want to keep me as a little private water fountain pet. I don't think my words would hold much weight for you."

"I can smell him all over you—no, _in _you." He studied me evenly. "She wishes to expel anyone from your realm that know of our existence. Could you really idly sit by and allow him and the rest of your friends to be wiped from existence?"

I stared hard at him. "There's no way she could do that. Even if she is Queen of the Light or whatever."

"You underestimate us."

"I don't really have a basis to estimate off of." He nodded, standing up.

"And that is why I have decided to give you a little lesson on tapping into and controlling your powers." He held out his hand to me, a familiar smirk crossing his face. "That is, of course, if you don't decide to claw me to death."

"I have a feeling that my mother tried and failed."

"But not in vain," he assured me. I grasped his hand. What exactly was I getting myself into? I'm always getting myself into trouble. Even when I tell myself that I won't. Shit. I don't even listen to me. A mental note to work on that entered my mind, quickly shut out by the apprehension building in the back of my neck. Suddenly I wished for Godric to be by my side. The thought of being forced to leave him saddened and angered me. This Maab was going to get a good kick in her little baby razor teeth. I'd make sure of it.

* * *

**_Downbelowgirl_**_, **OrangePlasticGummyBear**, **treewitch703**, and **Jupiter Water Goddess** are completely amazing for reviewing as fast as they did! I'm so happy that you're all really enjoying Aline, Godric, and this whole hodgepodge of a storyline. :)_

_As always, thank you to all the new favoriters/subscribers. And stay tuned for more juicy supernatural goodness within the next update.  
_

_~Lynn  
_


	11. Thwarting Genes

"Aline, focus," Kaelin scolded me, his eyes narrowing in annoyance. I wasn't sure what exactly was prompting me to dismiss everything he was trying to teach me. Perhaps it was the curious desire to see how a water fae reacted whenever they were pushed to the limits. Or it could have had something to do with the fact that I didn't see the need to figure out how to control water as easily as he did. I mean, I had other options. It wasn't like I _needed_ my faerie powers. I had gotten along just fine without them until this point.

"Sire," Nahla ventured hesitantly. He turned to her with a frown.

"I've told you before, Nahla, call me Kaelin. You're my daughter's godmother. There's no need for formalities."

"Kaelin," she nodded lightly, "perhaps you should try a different means of provocation."

"Such as?"

"May I?"

"By all means." He stepped aside, allowing the tall, slender woman into the designated training area. She studied me for a few moments, her head tilted to the side. I frowned at her. What was she planning? Before I could formulate a possible answer, she had changed her form. Instead she was a living, breathing replica of Debbie. Debbie's familiar dark smirk spread over my faerie godmother's face.

"What the fuck are you doing?" I questioned, disdain tangible in my voice.

"An experiment," was her simple answer before she charged at me, throwing her weight against mine. Nahla and Debbie both had a good five inches on me—and at least twenty pounds. So I found myself on the ground rather easily. Nahla's hand was hovering at my throat, the cold chill of ice threatening to freeze my blood on the spot. Kaelin was holding his breath, hand on his sword as if he were ready to step in if necessary. But my godmother pulled her hand away, standing up and pulling me to my feet. "We do not play nicely, Aline," she warned me, holding on to my hand tightly. "They will try to catch you off guard and end you as quickly as possible. Do not trust your eyes."

"Then how am I supposed to see?"

"_Feel_ who is around you." I looked at her doubtfully but did as she suggested, reaching out with my mind. When I did so, her disguise dropped. "We cannot alter our shapes physically as much as a skinwalker could. Ours is entirely within the mind." She tapped her temple for emphasis. "We can make the inexperienced see and hear whatever we want. We can _be _whoever we want. But only if you allow us to be. You are not human, but you have some very human notions about you. It would be best, if only for the time being, that you forget about those."

"I believe that's enough, Nahla," Kaelin said firmly, stepping into the training area to place a protective hand upon my shoulder. I resisted the urge to shrug off the contact. She looked at him, on the verge of disagreeing, before nodding. "I believe Aline is in need of a break?"

"And a few answers," I grumbled. Not knowing things ahead of time was starting to wear on my nerves. It made me want to smack all of them. Rather badly, I may add. He patted me on the shoulder before leading us away from the training area. I followed with my arms crossed, glaring daggers at the two faeries in front of me. Nahla was talking in hushed tones with him, arguing against something he was firmly set in. Apparently dropping the formalities was the only encouragement she needed for the beginnings of an outright mutiny.

By the time we had returned to the castle, dusk had fallen. "Are you hungry?" Kaelin asked, throwing a glance over his shoulder at me. I shook my head 'no.' Eating would only waste time and slow me down. Besides, for all I know, they could be up here eating infant babies or something like that. And I've always had a 'no eating other people' policy in place. They're too…dirty. Kaeline didn't press the matter, dismissing Nahla, and continuing with me to a part of the castle I had never been to before. "These are the royal sleeping quarters. You have your own room across the hall from mine."

I shot him a quizzical glance.

"You have always had a place here, Aline. Your mother thought it would be best if you remained in the mortal realm."

"You didn't?" I questioned, studying his reaction.

"No, I didn't," he replied quietly. "Not because I thought we might need you in times of war. But because you are my daughter. You belong in this realm."

"I'm Jackson Herveaux's daughter," I narrowed my eyes at him. "And I belong in the 'mortal realm' with him. And Alcide, Godric, Eric—hell, even Pam. I certainly do _not_ belong here."

"You are your mother's daughter," he replied simply, kissing me on the forehead before retiring to his chamber. I stared after him for a minute, digesting what had happened today. With a final shake of my head, I turned and went into my own room. It was a rather beautiful room, I admitted silently. Of course I would never let on that I liked it. But it was decorated in many shades of blue—the royal blue the nobles wore right down to shades that matched Kaelin's eyes—and silver. It had always made me curious as to why silver had never had any effect on me. Silver could be deadly to weres. Even vampires. But I suppose that my fae heritage thwarted that gene.

The décor itself appeared to be from medieval times. I found this both pleasing and annoying. Medieval was beginning to become overplayed. It was often a way for decorators to appear knowledgeable while having the luxury of also being lazy. There wasn't much to learning about Renaissance décor. Decorators who repeated medieval styles over and over and over again are one of my pet peeves.

I opened the closet, finding a barrage of royal blue ensembles. Most were accented with lighter shades of blue and silver, just as my room was. I wrinkled my nose. The chameleon effect wasn't what I was going for. I began to dig until I found a small selection of mainly silver and white garments. Selecting the one that I assumed was designed for sleeping, I hesitantly put it on. It fit perfectly as if it were tailored to my body.

There was a knock on the door.

"Come in," I called, admiring the effect it had on my body. Perhaps I would have to get some custom dresses designed once I returned home.

"Excuse me," a male fae bowed as he let himself in. He didn't go any further than behind the closed door. "I was not aware that you were getting ready to sleep."

"It's fine," I smiled. "I don't sleep much."

"The King suggested that I should come to introduce myself. My name is Bahari." I studied him. He was tall—as were most of the water fae, I was noticing. He was handsome in the way that all fae are handsome. Well sculpted features, aqua blue eyes, curly black hair, and overly attentive to me. It was both unnerving and flattering, this unwavering attention they had. Almost as if I were speaking the most interesting thing in the world. He also wore the garb strictly prohibited to nobility.

"It's nice to meet you, Bahari, I'm Aline."

"I know," he grinned. "Your father has been talking about you nonstop since Nahla has been coming to your realm to speak to you."

Instead of arguing, I was intrigued. "Has he?"

"He has. You are far prettier than I imagined," he said simply. "When he said that you were half werewolf, I expected—"

"Someone a little more savage?"

"Forgive me, I did not mean to be disrespectful."

"Everyone expects us to be barbarians," I laughed. "But we aren't all savages." I shot him an amused smile. "For a fae, you aren't too bad."

"You aren't so bad for a werewolf," he winked.

"What do you guys eat around here?"

He gave me a curious glance. "Typical things that are found in the mortal realm. We also have fruits and such that are native only to this realm." His speech paused as he studied me. "Are you planning to remain in our realm?"

"No," I said firmly. "I have people and things to return to."

"I'll be right back." Before I could argue, he was gone. I'm going to spend most of my time here staring after people in confusion. That irritated me. Pushing that to the side, I walked over to the fully stocked bookshelf against the wall. The fae apparently believe in being well read. Well that explains where I get that from. Jackson and Alcide have both found my fondness for books troublesome more than anything. Werewolves (especially the male ones) seem hell bent on simply taking action without ever bothering to obtain proper knowledge of a situation. It means that, more often than not, they end up in a whole heap of trouble. But then what's my excuse? I take the time to learn and I still get in trouble. …Okay, I _usually_ take the time to learn.

There was a sharp knock at the door before Bahari let himself in. "I've brought you some food. I hope that you like it," he added nervously. He took the tray over to the small table in the far left corner of the room. Each room here was more like a mini apartment than a bedroom, I noted.

"Thank you," I nodded eagerly, taking a seat. He hovered awkwardly. "I can't eat all of this by myself. You'll have to help me." He gave a thankful smile before bowing into the chair.

"Princess—"

"Whoa, hey. Don't even go there buddy. My name is Aline. I'm nobody's fucking princess."

"I'm sorry, I did not mean to offend you—"

"No, I'm sorry. You all seem deadest on formalities." I offered a wolfish grin. "And I most certainly am not. Besides, I don't feel right even claiming any seat of power here. I'm the new girl in town. It's not like I'll really have a lot of pull where it counts."

"For the record, we don't really have towns, Miss Aline." I gave him a warning look. "Aline," he consented. "They're more like sectors."

"Sectors? How many of them are there?"

"One for each element: Sky, Metal, Water, Wood, Fire and Earth. Typically only four are recognized, however. Those are the Sky—or air—Water, Fire, and Earth. We are the water fae, as I'm sure you've very well discovered by now. Maab and her kingdom are the sky fae. They have dominion over lightning. Damek rules over the earth domain. They typically rule over the very ground beneath us. Earthquakes are rather common there. It's why their live in the mountains," he pointed outside toward some rather ominous looking mountains. "And Seraphina is in charge of the fire kingdom."

"Are they allied with one another?"

"Usually we keep to ourselves. Sometimes warring simply to make points." He shook his head. "I always try to stay out of that. But it's hard to avoid when there are under a thousand of us in one realm. That's the funny thing. We don't actually die when we war with one another. Instead we merely injure one another badly enough to leave scars and leave it at that. As for the present time, however, Maab is the only one that stands alone if that is your question." I nodded. "Seraphina and Damek have both pledged the loyalties of their kingdoms. The Kingdom of Wood, a secondary kingdom, is within Damek's territory so they have pledged their loyalty as well. The Kingdom of Metal is in Maab's territory. They have offered a secret alliance but they can only do so much without her finding out."

"Then why is it so hard to overthrow Maab?"

"Because she outranks us on a technicality." I raised my eyebrows at him. "She is the eldest child of Mother."

"Mother?"

"The Goddess—Mother Earth," he waved his hand. "She has gone by many names over the centuries. But she created the fae to help humans survive her own elements. Until the vampires nearly drove us to extinction. Then we were allowed a realm entirely of our own. We could prosper here and remain rather happy but we seem to have stumbled on a small snag in the area of repopulation."

I gave him a curious look, causing him to shift uncomfortably.

"Most of our women have lost fertility. Those who can conceive are of great value to us. But they typically cannot carry a full term without some horrible mishap. That is why Maab wishes to gather those in possession of faerie blood in your realm and to trap them here."

"You don't agree with her?"

"She wishes to trap all of us here. The portals that bridge your world to ours and vice versa would be forever severed." A wry smile crossed his lips. "We would only ever see each other for the rest of our lives."

"That would drive me insane," I frowned. "How does she expect to keep the ones from my realm here?"

"There are certain items native only to our realm that, when ingested, will forever bind your physical being to this plane. Leaving this plane after ingesting it will destroy you. Literally. I've seen it happen a few times." A faraway look filled Bahari's eyes. "That is why I questioned whether you would be residing here permanently or temporarily."

"Was Kaelin planning to—?"

"No. The King would never force you into anything against your will. Perhaps he would have before your creation. But, now, he has a rather whimsical notion of mortals."

"I think I'm flattered. I expect that it was my mother's doing?"

"And a bit of your own. He's been watching you grow up." I gave him a look of intrigue.

"How?"

He stood, offering me his hand. "Come, I'll show you."

* * *

_Usually I thank everybody in a little bit of a hodgepodge statement-but because so many of you had inquiries, I'll take the time to answer and thank you individually._

_**treewitch703**—as far as I know, I haven't seen lakes quite like this before. I could be wrong. But I just took the idea of the lakes in the True Blood series and ran with it. ozlady80—yes! Michael is the archangel of war. Good literary catch. :)_

_**Jupiter Water Goddess**—I'm glad that you liked that line. And there should be some Godric coming up soon!_

_**OrangePlasticGummyBear**—thank you so much!_

_Andddddd (as always) thank you to the people who have favorited and subscribed to the Veldt!  
_

_~Lynn  
_

_Oh, one more thing. I wanted to share a little bit of where I got the title from last chapter-but I forgot. Oh the woes of a short attention span in the middle of a busy summer, no? Ha. Anyway I got the title while I was driving incidentally enough. It's the title of a song by one of my favorite musicians. (As of late anyway. I have a new favorite just about every Tuesday. But I've been stuck on this one for awhile.) His name is Sims and he's an MC/hip-hop artist hailing from the city of Minneapolis, Minnesota. And listening to him on my drive in to work the one day just caused these little gears to click into my head: Aline would more than likely be a rather large fan of Sims. (And the whole Doomtree collective. But Sims is just so much of a badass that it seems like he would be her first choice. [He's also one of the best performers I've seen live recently. So much talent in one person. In all of Doomtree, really. Haven't found a collective that continually impresses me as much as these guys do. Inspiring in so many different ways.]) I could go on and on about that forever. But, instead, I'll simply leave you with this little YouTube link with the encouraged "hey, check it out" tagline.  
_

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(Incase the embedding doesn't work and you're dying of curiosity, here's the link: /JmxOV8glq3I )


	12. Secrets

Bahari led me down the hallway away from the main entrance, activating a hidden door. I had to admit that I was impressed. It's not every day that you get to learn the ins and outs of a secret society. Even if, technically, this society is part of me. But I still wouldn't know enough about it to write an essay on it if my life depended on it. Then again I would really like to know what kind of psychopath would force me to write an essay for my life. I might be so impressed with their insistence on literary intelligence that I wouldn't mind if they were really trying to kill me. I have a skewey sense of normality. That's been proven time and time again.

We continued down the small corridor the secret door had revealed. It was about fifteen minutes later that it actually opened into a large, domed room. There was a large tranquil bowl of water in the middle of the room. Aside from a few decorations, that was the only attraction in the room. "This," he explained, letting go of my hand, "is a mirror that can be used to view other realms. It's how we've been keeping tabs on you."

"We? I thought it was only Kaelin," I mused. He awkwardly reddened a bit at the thought, clearing his throat roughly.

"We've, uh, all been assigned to watch your well-being," he replied. "Nahla and I were the ones that took up watch the most whenever King Kaelin was busy. Uh, anyway. We use this to view not only other realms but to call upon other kingdoms. They're all water-based, naturally. Our element seems to be the most conducive of energy. Only a few of us have access to these chambers."

"Aren't you breaking all kinds of laws bringing me here, then?"

"Technically." A small smile grazed his lips. "But I felt that the King would not object to you being here. Politically, you outrank myself and Nahla. King Kaelin is the only one in our realm that will out rank you. Your aunts and uncle, of course, also out rank you. And their offspring are politically your equals even if they are older than you."

"Aunts and uncle?"

"Maab and Seraphina are your aunts. Damek is your uncle."

"Oh. That adds a whole other level to this war then, eh?"

"Familial ties tend to have less meaning here than in the mortal realm. Only direct ties three generations up or down are considered to be of any merit. But we all share the same blood. Even if it is running into extinct—"

Before he could finish his sentence, a door on the opposite side of the chamber opened. Nahla and Kaelin stood there looking rather unamused.

"And this is the part where you get to hear about just how many rules I've broken," Bahari murmured. I couldn't help but show amusement at this.

"Bahari, what are you doing here with my daughter?" Kaelin demanded.

"Giving away all of our secrets, no doubt," Nahla chuckled. "Perhaps that is not such a bad thing." She shot me a grin before moving over to the mirror, resting her palms on the edges. A few words in a language I didn't understand escaped her lips as she invoked the power necessary to operate it. Kaelin gave Bahari and I a look that clearly stated he would be having a word with us later before going to join my godmother.

Her eyes widened at the image she was seeing, speaking quickly and lowly to Kaelin. Bahari looked perplexed, unable to catch the entirety of their conversation. Kaelin looked as if he were dead set against whatever Nahla was pleading with him about. That became even more apparent when she clenched her jaw, nostrils flaring, and puffed her chest out at him. It was unnerving to see her so unrefined. Just about everyone here looked overly refined at all times.

The thought made me shift nervously from foot to foot. Finally, she simply scowled at him and turned away from him.

She spoke to me: "you are rather attached to your life back in the mortal realm, are you not?"

"Well, yeah," I answered, puzzled. She went back to berating Kaelin in their unknown language. Bahari stiffened. Apparently he had caught the gist of the conversation. I tugged at his shirt. He paid me no attention. So, uping the ante, I dug my nails into his arm. Jumping, his blue eyes met mine. I gave him a look that clearly said I wanted answers.

"There is something going on in your realm," he supplied, intently studying the arguing faeries before us. "It involves a vampire. One that you're rather attached to and—"

I didn't give him the chance to finish that thought. Instead I marched right over to Kaelin and stared him evenly in the face to the best of my ability. "If you're keeping something from me that involves Godric, I _will_ redecorate this room with your blood. And I will enjoy ever second of it," I threatened, my voice at a low growl.

"There is no guarantee that you will even make it in time," he reasoned, staring hard at Nahla.

"She deserves the chance to try. Don't take out your guilt on her," Nahla snapped.

"But she could be at risk—"

"If you don't let me go, I'm going to put this _entire _building at risk." The ice in my voice spread to the air, causing the temperature to drop severely. Crap. Awakening these suped up powers was going to cause me more headaches than they were going to solve. "Whatever knowledge you're keeping from me, I want it."

"Godric believes that you are dead," Kaelin relented.

"I just left this morning."

"That was two and a half years ago in your realm," Nahla replied quietly. I turned to her, mouth open in rage.

"_What?"_

"If I had told you that, you wouldn't have agreed to come here."

"You're damn fucking right I wouldn't have!"

"There's not enough time to argue about this. I shouldn't have kept the information from you," Nahla admitted. "_We_ shouldn't have kept this information from you. And we aren't keeping this information from you now." A pointed glare at Kaelin. "Godric does not believe that there is anything left for him now that you've ceased to be in that realm."

That information was like a heavy blow to the center of my chest, bringing fearful tears into my eyes. I couldn't even formulate the words that wanted to break free. Nahla crouched beside me, moving my hair out of my face. I hadn't even realized that I had fallen to the ground. But I had. In a sad little heap at Kaelin's feet. She hoisted me up and off of the ground.

"There is no time for that." And then she was sprinting out of the room with me in tow. I numbly followed, my mind trying to wrap itself around this information. I had been gone for two and a half years in my realm even though I was only here for five hours at the most. Godric thought I was dead. He was going to end his life. And I might not make it in time.

Well, fuck. She didn't wait to warn me that we were about to teleport before pulling me through the veil at one of the winter lakes. If I had thought that the autumn ones were cold, I was sure that I had been frozen to death at this one. When we appeared in the mortal realm, she wasted no time in stopping to explain anything. She merely kept marching with me in tow behind her.

"He is in a church not too far from here," she informed me. "A church belonging to the Fellowship of the Sun."

"Theodore Newlin?"

"He is deceased. A cleverly orchestrated car accident. His son, Steve, is in charge now. Perhaps because of his father's death he is even more steadfast than his father," she said gravely. "I knew that the Church was in Texas—but I hadn't thought that Godric would turn himself over to them to spill a little blood."

I said nothing, taking in the information. She brought me to the front door of the church, giving me a stern look.

"I cannot go in there with you. My scent cannot be masked as easily as yours. Once this is settled, I will be back to see you. I imagine your father will be in tow as well." A regretful look crossed her face but she brushed it aside, kissing my forehead gently. "Now go."

She didn't have to tell me twice. I threw open the church doors, sprinting down hallways, allowing my mind to guide me to where everyone was gathered. I threw open the doors, drawing the eyes of everyone in the room to me. Eric was chained to a table at the front of the church. Sookie was being held by some of the Fellowship men. And Bill was watching her helplessly, a tortured expression on his face. I almost felt sorry for him. Almost.

"Where is Godric?" I demanded.

"Who the _fuck_ are _you_?" Steve Newlin sneered at me. I growled, charging at him across the room and taking him down to the ground despite my smaller frame.

"Let me repeat the question. Where," I inched closer to his face, "is Godric?"

"The basement!" Sookie yelled, biting the hand of the man that tried to silence her. I gave her a thankful nod, getting off of Newlin just as a group of vampires came in. Immediately all hell broke loose. The Fellowship members screamed in terror as the local vampires set to work scaring the hell out of them. Sookie helped me take the silver off of Eric, who was looking at me as if I were a ghost. When we were finished, he sat up on the table, placing a large hand on the side of my cheek.

"You're alive," he breathed. "How?"

"Long, long, _long_ story," I shook my head, turning away from him.

"Underlings," a familiar voice flew out across the church. I looked up to see Godric dressed once again in white, standing on one of the beams close to the ceiling of the church. He glanced at me, a pained expression crossing his face, before he refused to glance in my direction.

I gave Eric a look of confusion.

"Long story," he mirrored me. But this time his voice was grave. Before I could press for further details, Godric had moved next to us at vampire speed, lifting Steve Newlin off of the ground with ease.

"Good people, who of you are willing to die for this man's madness?" Nobody moved. "That's what I thought. Stand down everyone. Stand down." The vampires resumed a peaceful stance while the humans began filing out. Sookie's arms were immediately around my neck, nearly knocking me over.

"Oh my god, Aline," she sobbed. I returned her hug, wondering what in the world I was going to tell them. "Where have you been?"

Only then did Godric openly stare at me. She let go of me, turning her attentions to Bill. Godric reached out, gently stroking my jaw line with his thumb. "I have imagined this many times," he whispered, blood brimming in his eyes. "But to have you appear to me here? Now—"

I drew his body against mine, cutting him off with my lips. Silently, I made a resolve to ice the hell out of Nahla and Kaelin the next time I saw them. But, at the same time, I was also entirely grateful to Nahla. Without her—no, I don't even want to think about it.

Godric barely let me out of his sight the rest of the night, hovering near me even when other vampires wished to discuss duties involved with being a sheriff. He would simply tell them that I was trustworthy. And would latch his hand on to mine if I even looked like I was about to leave. It was a new side of Godric I hadn't seen before. Even Eric was different. Everyone was different. Except for me. For me I had only been gone for a few hours. But in this world I had been gone for two and a half _years_. That was hard to wrap my head around.

It was only a few hours away from dawn when the vampires began to wander out of Godric's home. Finally, it was just Godric, Sookie, Eric, Bill, Jason (Sookie's brother), Isabel and Stan (Godric's nest mates), and I. Jason had decided he was going to spend the night in Dallas instead of driving the entire way back to Bon Temps. Of course Godric had gladly lent out a room for him to use. Sookie, Bill, and Eric would be staying at the vampire friendly hotel down here. But not until I had provided some answers, apparently.

That led us to sitting around the living room awkwardly. Isabel and Stan were on the other side of the house. But I had no doubt that they would be able to hear whatever I said. "So," I said awkwardly. "I like your hair, Sook."

"Thanks," she smiled, giving me a bit of a perplexed expression.

"I thought I left a note," I remembered, my eyes snapping to Godric and then to Eric.

"Note?" Godric seemed genuinely puzzled.

"Yeah, I said I was going to go meet—," I cut myself off, realization setting in. "Tricky little fucking _bitch_. The next time I see her, I'm snapping her little faerie neck."

"Faerie?" Sookie asked, looking startled.

"I'm half faerie, but I imagine that your boyfriend already knew that," I sighed, giving Bill a dark look. He scowled right back at me. She looked at Bill, her temper flaring.

"You knew about that?"

"He also knew that you are," I continued. Bill was now growling, wanting nothing more than to tear my head off and drink me. I sent an equally as gruesome mental image back to him. He recoiled a bit at my thought. Nothing like dismantling a vampire—but _not_ killing them—and then stuffing them full of silver before injecting it straight into their veins.

"I'm a _what_?"

"Faerie."

"I'm a fucking faerie? How lame is that? Oh, sorry, no offense."

I chuckled. "None taken. If it's any consolation, you don't act a thing like them." She nodded but turned her venomous gaze back to Bill.

"You knew about this?"

"It's probably why he's been so reluctant to let you go," I smirked, reading his thoughts. He tried to shut me down. I held his gaze willing nothing but ice in his veins. In seconds he was frozen in place. "If I weren't afraid of getting blood all over anything, I would suggest that we shatter him into a million tiny little pieces. Dip them in silver. And then burn them."

Sookie and Eric raised their eyebrows at me. Godric simply continued to run his thumb over the back of my hand.

"Sorry. Werewolves like to play with their toys before destroying them for good," I grinned. "Anyway, he'll take a little while to thaw out. But I guess that raises a whole slew of new questions, doesn't it?"

"Slightly," Eric mused with a smirk.

"Kaelin, my biological father, and his kingdom seem to be in a little bit of trouble. One of the other faerie queens wants to gather all of the partial fae from this realm and keep them contained in the Otherworld. Which is where I was," I added. "But that would also mean destroying the bridge from that world to this one. He and my godmother, Nahla, asked for my help to keep this from happening. The farthest I got was learning how to use some of our skills, though. Time works differently over there," I frowned, "I swear I was only gone for a few hours. Half a day at the most."

"That would explain your clothes." I gave the Viking a quizzical look as he gestured to my outfit. I glanced down, surprised that I was still in the silver and blue nightdress.

"Oh, I forgot about this. It's deceptively comfortable."

"Why does Maab want to bring the faeries here into the Otherworld?" Godric asked, his brows furrowed in concern.

"Most of their women have lost the ability to conceive a child. And those that can either barely carry the child to term or lose it just as quickly as it's conceived. They're bordering on extinction. Maab is the only one that wants that, though. The rest enjoy walking among us. As long as they stay away from vampires."

"Their blood compels us to drink from them," Eric nodded. Sookie glanced at him, her face unreadable. I made an effort to stay out of her thoughts. There had been enough secrets in the past few hours to last me through this lifetime and the next two. "It is often hard to stop once we've started, too."

I nodded. "That's what Nahla was telling me. They also have these basins of water that they call mirrors that can see into other realms and into the chambers of other kingdoms. It's a form of communication for them. But that's how I ended up here tonight. Nahla wanted to repair some of the damage she had dealt, apparently."

"It was rather kind of her to steal you and then return you." Eric shook his head. "And I thought this one," he nodded to Sookie, "was trouble." She shot him a dark look.

"Of course I'm more trouble," I rolled my eyes. "I was raised by Jackson Herveaux." A hearty chuckle emerged from the Viking's throat.

"I would expect no less."

I continued to fill them in on my time in the faerie realm until nearly sunrise. It looks like Sookie and Eric would be spending the night here. Bill had been asked to leave by Godric after he was thawed out and Sookie wanted nothing to do with him. He showed Sookie to another spare bedroom while Eric went to his usual room. I waited in the living room, giving the room an admiring look around. Godric and Eric both had rather exquisite decorating tastes.

Godric emerged a few minutes later. I smiled a him, going to his side. He took my hand, lacing his fingers through my own, and led me down the hallway to his room. It was light-proof (as I expected all the rooms are) which meant that I would be able to stay with him through the day. As if reading my mind, he pulled me onto the bed with him, holding me close against his chest.

"I had thought for certain that you were dead."

"If I had known, I never would have left," I murmured. "But, believe me, I'm not going anywhere again anytime soon." He smiled softly, pulling me closer to him until there was no space left between us.

* * *

_Thank you **Jupiter Water Goddess **for taking the time to review the last chapter! :)_

_~Lynn  
_


	13. Woof

"So, let me get this straight," Jason was saying over a late breakfast (which Sookie and I prepared) the next day, "you were in the land of the faeries? And you're part faerie—so is my sister?"

"In a very Cliff Notes' version, yes," I nodded. Sookie simply nodded, scooping a pile of eggs into her mouth. "On a technicality, I think that means that you're part faerie, too."

"I ain't no fucking faerie."

"I don't mean drag queen faerie, jock boy. I meant flitting to and fro with wings and glitter," I smirked.

"Wait, you do that?"

"On occasion. It's so nice to dress like our people, isn't it, Sookie?"

"Of course," she grinned, understanding my joke. "You should join us sometime, Jason."

"We wear tutus."

He stared at us for a few seconds, trying to figure out if we were being serious or not. Finally, a slow grin stretched over his face. He, too, had gotten the joke. "You almost had me going there for a minute," he admitted, "but Sook would never wear a tutu."

"And I would?"

"Well, I don't know exactly what you and Godric are into—"

"Oh hell no, I don't wear tutus for anyone," I shook my head firmly. "Godric, however—"

"Alright, I don't wanna hear any more. Jesus, you kids these days." I raised my eyebrows at him. I was certainly younger than he was—I'm younger than Sookie, too. But Godric was over two thousand years old. He outranked all of us easily. Even if he does look like he's still a minor. Vaguely, I wondered if that made me a pedophile. Or if those laws even existed for vampires. Technically, though, he had been turned at sixteen—so age of consent in most areas of the country. Are there even vampire children?

"Are you okay, Aline?" Sookie asked, interrupting my train of thought.

"Oh, yeah. I was just wondering if there were vampire children. Like, kids that were turned into vampires. And if there was a Megan's Law for them or not."

"That," she paused, "you know, actually I'm not sure. That would get kind of sticky. Vampires are usually a lot older than they appear."

"Godric was turned at sixteen," I nodded. I giggled at the fact. "Usually I like guys that are older." My eyes flickered to Jason. "About your age, really."

"How old are you?"

"Twenty-one—or should it be almost twenty-four now? I don't know how that works. I'll just say twenty-one since it was only a few hours for me."

"I still can't get over that," Sookie shook her head. "Why does it work like that?"

"I think because it's technically a different realm entirely. I mean, I think it's pretty parallel to ours. But there doesn't seem to be much of a sense of time there, either. Night turns into day and vice versa there but nobody was even the least bit tired anywhere I went. Even after training. Oh, which reminds me," I turned to her. "Be sure and read people wherever you go now."

"What? Why?"

I quickly explained what Nahla had done and how convincing it had been. "Even their more human forms are illusions projected into the minds of everyone around them. It's really quite impressive. There are about two-thousand people there and they would _all _see the same thing if they were in the same room."

"That's crazy," Jason shook his head. It amazed me how similar the two siblings really were. Even though Jason denied it, there seemed to be at least one faerie thing about him: he was likeable in that effortless, easy sort of way. And I've heard that he gets any girl he wants, just about. People are naturally drawn to faeries—undead _or _alive.

"It really is," Sookie mused. "Do you think that my blood is the only reason why Bill ever said he loved me?"

I gave her a sympathetic look. "I can't say for certain. But I certainly didn't like what I heard as your friend, a woman, and someone of fae descent." I paused. "Did he really give you his blood the second day that you knew him?"

"I was beaten up by the Rattrays," she nodded in explanation. "He did it to save my life. He also had some of mine that night. He was licking it off of my forehead when I came to."

"And you found this attractive?" Jason asked, giving her a look that clearly said 'what-the-fuck.' She squirmed uncomfortably under our gazes.

"He was the first and only guy to show and interest in me up until recently."

"Eric," I replied knowledgably.

"How did you know?" Sookie asked, startled.

"Eh. I've been around him long enough to be able to read him—even without reading his mind."

"You can do that?"

"You can't? Maybe it's because I have a more direct lineage of fae blood in me. Yours is several generations back."

"Maybe. But you don't think he just wants my blood?"

"No, I don't," I shook my head. "From what Godric has told me about their time together—and they have about a thousand years in companionship—I've discerned that they never really settled down. At least not for very long. Eric seems insistent on keeping you around. What that means, I'm not sure. I could probably find out from Godric. But I'm not sure if he would willingly pass on his progeny's secrets. Probably not. They have a pretty father-son relationship." Which was weird to think about too much. If Godric and I got married…would Eric be my son, too? I somehow didn't think vampire politics and families worked that way. But it was still a weird thought. I would be twenty-something with a thirty-something-year-old son. Ha. Maybe those right-wing nuts are right. They aren't normal. But, really, what _is _normal?

"Aline," Jason raised an eyebrow at me.

"Sorry," I smiled, shaking out my long, choppy dark hair. "I guess I'm still a little tired."

"Just wanna make sure you're okay is all," he nodded. "Maybe you should go get some sleep."

"That doesn't sound like such a bad idea."

"I think I will, too," Sookie yawned. "These vampires are tiring."

"Somehow, I think this one's on me." She gave me a smile that was a mixture of an apology and sympathy.

"Well, I'm gonna head back to Bon Temps," Jason declared, standing up from the table. "Hoyt and them probably need a hand." He gave me a quick hug goodbye and then did the same to his sister, who insisted on walking him to the front door at least. I left them alone to return to Godric's room. He was in the same position he had been in when I left—still hugging that pillow I had squeezed in there as my replacement. I grinned, sliding into bed behind him to put my arm around his still waist, wondering exactly how confused he would be when he awoke.

The gentle movement of someone running fingers through my hair woke me up several hours later. I opened my eyes, meeting the sea-green eyes of Godric. A slow, lazy smile stretched across my face. "Good morning," I yawned.

"Morning?" he quipped, cocking an eyebrow in amusement. I furrowed my brows.

"Fine. 'Evening.' Keep it up, Chuckles, and I'll reconsider this whole you being able to wake me up whenever you're bored shtick." He chuckled.

"You have to be awake, a member of the Authority is on her way." The grogginess of sleep left me immediately as I sat up next to him. "I had Isabel bring you some of her clothes so that we would not have to," he paused, "explain your heritage." I nodded and stood to change. "Michael has also returned. He is in the living room."

"He couldn't see where I went, either?" I asked, curiosity getting the better of me. I glanced over my shoulder at him. He shook his head in response.

"God had no domain where you were. It is why we so readily believed that you were dead."

"Alcide? My father?"

"They have not been informed of your return. I thought that it may be best if that is something you do yourself." I nodded thoughtfully. That was going to be a rather messy reunion. I wasn't sure whether or not they would cry themselves into puddles or tear me apart until I _made _a puddle. It was probably the former.

"I'm going to kill that faerie the next time I see her," I grumbled, pulling on the skirt suit that Isabel had leant me. I made a mental note to commend her taste.

"I think there is a line forming for that," he smirked. He stood, pulling me against him and pressing a kiss to my temple. "But, for now, we must wait for Nan Flanagan to arrive."

I wrinkled my nose in a rather un-ladylike fashion. "Nan Flanagan? You mean no one has staked her yet?"

"Not yet, but give it time."

"Easy for you to say," I poked him in the chest before leading the way into the living room. Sookie and Eric were both already seated there. Sookie looked irritated about something and Eric felt remorseful. Godric raised his eyebrows in questioning at his progeny. He shook his head. Poor guy. He was rather good at digging holes to bury himself in. And Sookie had absolutely no problems smacking him in the head with his shovel until he fell in.

I sniggered a little at the thought, drawing all eyes to my face. Thankfully Isabel and Stan entered the room. "Thank you for letting me borrow your clothes," I smiled at the female vampire thankfully. "You have impeccable taste."

"Thank you," she smiled in return at me. It was a well practiced smile. Without reading her, I knew that she was a rather guarded individual. "I am glad that you like them. I was unsure of your personal taste. Godric helped me a little," she admitted, shooting him an amused glance.

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Really? Well, maybe I should make you go shopping with me instead of Michael next time."

"As long as you stay in this realm, I have no problems following you anywhere," Michael objected as he entered the room. He had grown his hair out so that it was long enough he could wear it back in a ponytail.

"Sorry, I wasn't very familiar with how their realm worked." Stan and Isabel looked dreadfully confused. There was a sharp knock at the door. "But I'll have to tell you all about it later. Maybe you'll have some more insights for me."

"More than likely," he nodded seriously. We all stood, Godric leaving momentarily to answer the door. He returned moments later with Nan Flanagan and two of her security guards. She seated herself first before allowing us to sit as well.

"First things first," she began, staring all of us down, "why on earth did this even happen in the first place?"

"I thought that I could alleviate some of the tensions between vampires and humans," Godric replied honestly.

"They were going to force you to meet the sun."

"I am aware of that." I gripped his hand tightly.

"Do you have any idea how much of a media frenzy you've created? I'll be working nonstop for months to fix all of this damage."

"I apologize for that."

"I've heard you've become a little insane in your old age but I had no idea how true those rumors were," she said simply. "Sheriff, you fucked up. You're fired."

"With all due respect, I would like to suggest Isabel as my replacement."

"With all due respect, you don't have that kind of power anymore. You're just another washed up ancient."

"Watch your mouth," Eric snarled.

"No, you watch _your _mouth, Viking. Do you want to lose your area, too?"

"You don't have that kind of power."

"Try me, I'm on TV."

Sookie and I shot each other a glance over their squabbles. _They're no more than children sometimes, I swear,_ she told me telepathically.

_Oh trust me. The fae aren't much better. They just have the dignity of speaking in another language. And vampires like theirs to be more of a pissing match, I think,_ I replied with an amused smile. She returned my amusement, earning the attention of Nan.

"And what do the humans find so interesting? Why are you even here anyway?"

"She is my mate," Godric defended me. "And Sookie is her cousin."

"Your mate? You have a mate and you were willing to meet the sun. And, for Chrissake, what smells like _dog_?"

"Woof," I snapped at her.

"A werewolf? Good god, you _are _fucking insane," Nan stared at Godric. I growled protectively at her. She scowled at me, clearly looking down at me. Some day, the misanthrope in me is going to win. And there's going to be a lot less people left in the world. Undead or otherwise. "We're done here." With that, she let herself out with her guards in tow. I scowled after her.

"For wanting to stay alive, you certainly don't hesitate to stick your neck out for us," Stan grumbled at me. I stared at him evenly.

"I like vampires. Usually. More so than I like people in general," I admitted.

He shook his head, looking to Godric. "You always find the interesting specimens." With that, he turned on his heel and stalked out of the room. Isabel offered a slightly tearful exchange with Godric before following as well. She was extremely loyal to him. Something that both touched me and invoked a little, ugly pang of jealousy. I couldn't help but wonder if they had ever been involved together.

"You look like you're trying to set something on fire," Eric mused, coming to stand at my elbow.

"Don't be silly, I freeze and drown things," I replied absentmindedly. He glanced at me.

"And I thought that I had a foul temper." His chuckle snapped me out of my attempt to glare holes into the wall. I looked up at him in surprise.

"What?"

"You were wondering about Isabel and Godric?"

"I don't want to know. It's none of my business. I was gone for two years. Or a few hours. Whatever."

"You'd make a good vampire, you know. Cut throat and steadfast to defend anything you think is yours." I stared at him incredulously.

"Is that even possible?"

He shrugged. "Merely an observation. As for your question, no."

"What question?"

"I've never seen him fall apart as easily as he did after the first week you were gone," he continued as if I had never spoken. "He couldn't sense you any more. Anyone that looked like you was a constant source of disappointment. Eventually he stopped looking because it became too painful. Stan said that he confined himself to his room. Until the Fellowship demanded blood, of course. And now here we are," he smiled grimly at me. "So, no. Even when he believed that you had expired he never wavered. It was difficult to watch."

"It's difficult to hear," I admitted. I disliked being a source of discomfort for him. Even if it had been unintentional.

"I can imagine so. But if you ever pull a stunt like that again, and I lose him because of it, I _will_ seek vengeance for it."

"I would expect no less from a Viking," I replied with a serious nod. He shot me a crooked smirk.

"Until then, just stay where he can find you. I'd hate to have to chain you to a tree." He glanced down at me. "I did have a serious inquiry for you."

I nodded.

"The silver chains that crazy fucktard of a reverend put on me, they were silver." Another nod. "You were able to touch them. Why?"

"I assume it's because of Kaelin's blood. The colors of his kingdom are blue and silver. Most of their decorations themselves are silver. It's the only thing I can think of that makes sense enough to me."

"Iron?"

"I'm not anemic," I shot him a confused look. He rolled his eyes.

"I meant the metal."

"Oh, I don't think it bothers me. I've never exactly gone looking for it before. Why?"

"Most fae cannot touch it. Lemons?"

"Love them."

"Garlic?"

"Hate it," I smirked lightly.

"Okay, I give up. You're just an abnormality of God."

"Depends on which God you sell your soul to," I muttered, walking away from him to rejoin Godric.

* * *

_Thank you for reviewing, **OrangePlasticGummyBear**, **Jupiter Water Goddess**, and **Ericsbee**! You guys are on top of things. :)_

_The FanFiction muse has been rather kind to me this weekend. Here's to hoping that she finds me fascinating enough to hang out with me for a little while longer.  
_

_~Lynn  
_


	14. Family Reunions

Godric gave me a curious glance at the slight scowl on my face. I forced a smile instead, kissing him on the cheek. "It's nothing," I reassured him. He didn't look convinced, but he didn't press the matter either. I made a mental note to thank the gods, stars, whoever I needed to, that I had found someone like him. Or, rather, I guess he found me. But let's not get into trivial technicalities.

The five of us moved into the kitchen to retell my tale of skipping out on the human realm to Michael. He listened in silent contemplation as I retold the events that had unfolded. It was kind of unnerving how silent he was. In fact, he didn't speak until I was finished telling everything that had happened. He simply sat there with his elbows propped up on the table, his hands laced in front of his face to hide his mouth. "Your godmother, Nahla," he began slowly, "she is the one that glamoured me to the point of not being able to be in the same vicinity of her?"

"I would imagine so," I nodded. "Their mental powers are unlike anything I've ever seen before."

"And they are excellent conduits for natural magic," Godric nodded in agreement. "She could have used the morganite Aline found to amplify her intentions."

"Like a witch?"

He nodded. "Exactly like a witch." Well at least she hadn't been entirely lying when she had made it seem like she was a witch named Elissa, I decided silently.

"Well this certainly wasn't in the plans," Michael admitted. "When you weren't in this realm, the future changed entirely. You were essentially dead. Godric's bond to you couldn't be felt, either."

"That might have only been over here," I offered, "Kaelin could smell him through me."

"He could?" Sookie asked, surprised.

I nodded. "He said he could. And Nahla didn't seem to dispute this fact either."

"Out of all of my charges," Michael rubbed his face tiredly, "you have been my most troublesome. And I've only been watching you a grand total of about six months." He gave me a meaningful glance. "If I could go grey, I would. But I've been blessed with immortal youth. So just pretend that I've begun to go grey."

"Speaking of grey," Sookie gave my guardian archangel an odd glance, "what about Alcide and Jackson? They were both worried sick. Even came into the diner looking for you."

"And Fangtasia," Eric added. I glanced at the clock. It was an ungodly hour.

"I don't think they'll kill you for waking them up. And they might be a little angry that you didn't call them sooner."

"You're right," I agreed. Godric handed me a cell phone. I gave his arm a thankful squeeze before excusing myself to go into another room. My fingers dialed my brother's number from memory.

"Godric? I realize you don't sleep but are you aware of what time it is?" Alcide grumbled sleepily into the receiver. I sat there for a few moments, unsure of how to proceed. "Godric? Did you butt-dial me? Wait. You don't even usually _have_ pockets."

"Hi Alcide," I replied quietly.

"Aline? Is that you?"

"I've been gone for awhile apparently, huh?"

"Awhile? Jesus Christ. You've been gone for two-and-a-half-years."

"It's a long story. But I swear I didn't mean to up and disappear like that."

"Dad and I have been worried sick. We've been scouring everywhere for you. Even Northman was helping."

"He's not such a bad guy, Alcide," I chuckled. "How is Dad?"

"It varies. But I'm sure he'll pick up a little more once he sees you. Where are you, by the way?"

"At Godric's house in Dallas," I supplied easily. "It doesn't sound like we'll be staying here long. I think we may be coming back to Shreveport."

"Tonight?"

"No, I don't think so."

"Good, I'll be there with Jackson tomorrow."

"Michael and Sookie are here, too."

"Michael was allowed to come back? He nearly lost his wings for losing you as his charge."

"He didn't tell me that."

"Of course he wouldn't. He's still a man. Our pride gets the better of us most of the time." There was a pause. "I'm glad that you're alright."

"I am," I reassured him. "I met my biological father."

"How?"

"I'll have to explain everything tomorrow."

There was silence.

"Alcide, I can't see you nod."

"Goodnight, Little Optimist. I love you."

"I love you, too, Alcide."

I stared at the phone well after he had hung up until the beeping started. "Are you alright?" Godric questioned, gently taking the phone from me. He hung it up before tossing it aside carelessly.

"I just can't believe that it's been two-and-a-half-years," I shook my head. "Alcide sounded so—," I cut myself off with a firm shake of my head. "This is just going to take some getting used to."

"It will get easier with time," he pulled me onto his lap. I snuggled into his chest, allowing the calming scent of his land to lull me into a content state of peace and tranquility. "What would you think about moving back to Shreveport?"

"Well, I kind of assumed that was what you would want to do," I replied, pulling away to look at him. He nodded.

"Would it be alright with you?"

I smiled at him. "Of course. I'd be closer to Alcide. And Sookie and Jason live over in Bon Temps." I wondered how Sam was doing. Another glance at the clock informed me that it was probably too late to call him. "And Sam. If he still has a job for me. If not, I could always find work doing some sort of designing."

"You wouldn't have to work, you know." I frowned at him.

"It's sweet of you to offer to be my Sugar Daddy, but I'd rather work than lay around all day and do nothing. Besides, working might keep me out of trouble."

"I'm not sure you could ever stay out of trouble."

"Probably not," I laughed. "But I do appreciate the offer," I smiled at him, kissing him softly. "There is one thing that's been bothering me, though."

He looked at me attentively, his emerald eyes snapped to attention.

"What happened to Edgington?"

"He tried looking for you again about a year ago. But he found out that you were dead. The last that I was aware of, he is still in Mississippi with Talbot."

"I have this funny feeling that Mr. Compton is about to spill his guts to Edgington," I frowned.

"We'll worry about that when the time comes. Eric and I thought that he had kidnapped you at first," Godric admitted, "so we devised a few plans that might be useful in the event that he does manage to capture you." I gave him a curious look. He smiled wryly. It was a dark smile that sent shivers down my spine. A glimpse into the side of him that he struggled to keep at bay. If I was ever asked, at a later date, to pinpoint the exact moment that I had known I had fallen in love with this vampire—this man—it would be this moment. There was not a thing about him that I couldn't find a way to love. Maybe it wasn't a goal to love everything in its own way to some people. But that was a pretty admirable feat for me. People make me squeamish in the emotional department, for the most part. "It is probably better that you do not know," he said firmly, drawing me out of my thoughts. I gave him a small smile, kissing him once more.

"Probably not. You two might give me more ideas for whenever I decide to take over the world."

"Somehow, I don't think you need any help."

"Probably not," I repeated with a wicked grin. He chuckled, lifting me up easily and proceeding to take me to his room. Dawn had begun to break on the horizon, signaling the beginning of another day. I hoped that it was a far less eventful day. But I knew that I didn't have that much luck. Tomorrow would bring all the pains and woes that tied in with the past twenty-one (twenty-four) years of my life.

Despite the nagging feeling of dread, I fell into a deep slumber within Godric's embrace. It was anything but peaceful, however. I gave up sleeping rather early the next morning. Sookie was still asleep, no doubt tired from her squabbling with Eric. The vampires were, quite naturally, dead to the world for the next some odd hours. Michael was already in the kitchen when I entered it. He looked at me in concern.

"Nightmares?"

"Yeah," I nodded, taking a seat at the table across from him. He poured me a cup of coffee, preparing it exactly as he knew that I liked it. "I just have this bad feeling. Like something's about to go wrong. Terribly wrong. The kind of wrong you can't ever really recover from." I stared into the dark elixir before taking a heavy swig.

The archangel frowned at me, his brows pulling together. "What brought this on?"

"I've learned that things never stay this golden. And, when they _are_ like this, there's always something lurking behind the background." Enjoying life is one of my hang-ups. I can never quite get that one down.

"_Nature's first green is gold,_

_Her hardest hue to hold._

_Her early leaf's a flower;_

_But only so an hour._

_Then leaf subsides to leaf._

_So Eden sank to grief,_

_So dawn goes down to day._

_Nothing gold can stay."_

"Did you just quote Robert Frost to me?" I asked, my lips curving into a smile.

"I did," he nodded with a returned smile. "Human poetry is a guilty pleasure of mine. Just don't tell anyone." He gave me a cheeky grin. It was disarming to see him so human and yet know that he was so very far from it. Farther than Godric or myself, really.

"He's one of my favorite poets," I nodded appreciatively.

"Mine as well. He was rather obsessed with the failures and sufferings of mortals. Something that has been hidden from most of my realm. At least for the greater majority of our lives so far."

"How? Can't you all see into our realm?"

"Not exactly. Only a few of us are given that luxury. Fewer are actually allowed to walk amongst you."

"How many of you are here now?"

"Including me?" I nodded. "One."

"Tight ship."

"You're a special case," he shrugged. "I'm only permitted to be here as long as necessary."

I nodded again, studying my coffee intently as if it held the mysteries to the universe.

"I'm being compelled to leave," Michael grumbled. "Your godmother must want to visit."

"Nahla, I'm not speaking to you unless he's allowed to remain," I informed the air sharply. The uncomfortable look on Michael's face lessened to one of concern. My godmother walked into the kitchen mere seconds later.

"Sorry," she addressed Michael, "it's a precaution of our people."

"I'd like to say that I'm not offended by it," he gave her a long stare, "but I only wish the best for Aline. She is under my protection."

"Until you're through with her," Nahla sniped at him. "She is my charge for the rest of her life. Or the rest of mine. Whichever expires sooner." Then, to me, "are you alright?"

"Godric's still alive," I replied simply. "I'm not sure whether to thank you or rip your throat out."

"You made it in time."

"I nearly didn't."

"But you did."

"I don't hold our blood as valuable as you do," I reminded her sharply, "it would probably be wise not to give me a reason to spill it. Because, trust me, I will. The only reason why I made it back in time was because Bahari showed me the mirror. Without that, Godric would have met the sun."

"But our realm would have been saved and—"

"_Fuck _your _realm_." She visibly flinched at the venom in my voice. "I do not care for your realm any more than I care for the dirt on the bottom of my shoe. It exists, nothing more. I came out of sheer curiosity for the half of my heritage that could so easily leave me stranded for the greater majority of my life." She opened her mouth to speak but I held up my hand. "I'm not even close to finished, darling. So shut it and listen." Her mouth snapped closed. "Your kind cares nothing for anything but their own skins. And I want no part of it. If Maab tries to take me back to your realm, I'll do my damndest to kick her teeth up into her skull. Until then, I don't give a rat's ass what you have to say."

"I am sorry that you feel this way," Nahla replied quietly after a few moments. "Your father does care about you."

"He's not my fucking father," I whispered lowly. Michael studied me cautiously, noting how my muscles flexed impulsively. "Jackson Herveaux is my father. He took me in and raised me, no questions asked. Kaelin doesn't care about me as anything other than a weapon. He made that pretty damn clear when the only thing he was concerned about was training me how to use my powers instead of learning much about my life."

"There isn't time for that—"

"There's never time for anything. But real fathers _make _time."

"Aline, you aren't seeing the bigger picture."

"That's because she doesn't want to," the deep, gruff voice of Alcide interrupted. His dark brown eyes were narrowed on Nahla. Our father stood behind him, more reserved than the two of us, but still unable to conceal the blatant hate behind his dark eyes. "So you're the reason all of us thought Aline was dead?"

Nahla stiffened, remaining silent.

"Well?"

"She is," I replied when she refused yet again.

"Get the fuck out of my sight before I eat you," my brother snarled, a primal growl in the back of his throat. My faerie godmother jumped at the sound, fear flashing in her eyes.

"You wouldn't," she said slowly.

"Trust me, he would," Michael and I said in unison. I glanced at him and he shrugged. Either he had seen a possible future in which Alcide had made a buffet out of Nahla or he merely wanted her out of the house as quickly as possible.

Nahla's face screwed up into an expression of undignified disdain. "If you ever change your mind, just call for me. I will appear."

"Thanks, but I won't," I replied evenly.

"Either way, I expect to see you soon." Before I could ask what she meant, she had disappeared through the back door, fading away into a gentle mist. I scowled after her. Jackson took that opportunity to wrap his large arms around me.

"Good god, girl," he breathed into my hair before pulling away from me. "Don't you ever do that to us again." He kissed my forehead roughly before drawing me into another hug. When he had finished, Alcide pulled me into his arms.

"I can't believe it," my brother admitted. "You're alive. I've dreamed about this for two and a half years. And it's _real_."

I held onto him tightly. "I never would have left willingly if I had known what was going to happen," I reassured him honestly, pulling away to look him in the eyes. "I am rather surprised that Godric's still alive, though. I thought for sure that you two would tear him limb from limb if anything ever happened to me."

"Trust me," Dad told me firmly, "I wanted to at first. But then I saw what he looked like. I've never seen any man that messed up, let alone a vampire." Alcide, who is a clear projector of thoughts, was thinking that he had looked similar to how Dad had looked when mom died. It was a flattering and a saddening revelation. Double-edged sword.

"Nobody knew where you were," Alcide confirmed. "It was like you just disappeared off the face of the earth." I shifted uncomfortably. I wasn't exactly sure what they wanted me to tell them. Perhaps that I was sorry—which I was. But that was a complicated emotion. I wasn't sure if I was sorry because I had caused them pain or if I was sorry simply because I had lost time I could never get back. Or if there was even a difference between the two.

I gave him a sad smile before hugging him again. "Other than that, what have I missed?"

"Not very much in the business aspect," Jackson replied, taking a seat at the table. Alcide and I followed suit. Alcide took to sitting beside Jackson while I sat across from Alcide and next to Michael. The vampires had a rather small dining table (there were only two open seats remaining)—but I guess that was to be expected when they didn't really eat.

"Debbie tried to apologize for apparently kidnapping you," Alcide glanced at me in question.

"Oh, uh, that—right," I smiled sheepishly.

"Just because it's been almost three years doesn't mean we've forgotten that you just up and left for Germany. I get why Eric felt it was necessary but I still didn't like hearing it second hand."

"We thought it might be safer if you two didn't know. You would've tried to come to Germany and Edgington might have put two and two together. Especially since Debbie's part of his little pack."

"Was," Alcide corrected. "She's trying to clean herself up."

I was genuinely startled. "She is?"

He nodded. "She's still with Cooter. But she's trying to get off of the V. That means she can't work for Edgington anymore." He paused in thought. "She's a little bit more like the old Debbie. When we were all kids."

"Back then she wasn't so bad," I smiled grimly. "But it's hard to forget being kidnapped, beaten up, and offered up to vampires."

"She beat you up?"

I nodded. "Godric had to give me his blood. She did a pretty good bit of damage on me. Concussion, internal bleeding, immediate bruising," I ticked off on my fingers. "And I had to see her with that dirty excuse for a werewolf. So I'll include some mental scarring on top of it all."

Jackson chuckled. "No matter what anybody tells me, you aren't some little faery," he smiled at me. "You're a werewolf, through and through."

I grinned. "That's what I keep telling everyone."

After a few hours of catching up, we decided that we were hungry enough to deal with people. That meant finding somewhere in Dallas to eat. I've never been to Dallas before, so I didn't even have the slightest hint of where or what to recommend. Michael wasn't very concerned with the whole thing. Eating was a luxury for him. He didn't _have_ to eat to survive. He was only going because he would probably be skinned alive and/or drained by a great deal of supernatural beings if he let me out of his sight. Again.

Alcide and Jackson didn't really care much, either. As long as it involved some type of meat they were pretty satisfied.

That meant we ended up going to a steakhouse in the actual city of Dallas. (Godric's home is on the outskirts of the city. Neither he nor Eric were very fond of city life it seemed. I found that slightly odd. The city has always been something that's appealed to me. Now, don't get me wrong, I love the country. There's nothing quite like it. The air is clean and fresh. But the city is a modern day convenience chock full of opportunities ripe for the taking. And I have no problem reaching out to take those opportunities up on their promised offers.)

The waitress came by to take our meal order, leaving a little disturbed at the fact that both Jackson and Alcide had asked for their steaks bleu. I got a chicken sandwich, instead, and Michael ordered a Greek salad. Steak has always been one of those things I have to be in the mood for. While Alcide and Dad discussed one of their upcoming business deals, I focused my attention on the television.

Steve Newlin was discussing how much of a threat vampires really were to humans with a little more conviction than he used to. We probably hadn't really helped matters any with our little break-in rescuing of Godric. But it could have ended up a lot worse. I'm actually very surprised there was relatively no bloodshed or violence in general. I wondered how long this reverend had to live. Surely some vampire somewhere would decide to take matters into his or own hands. They have too much to lose to have their public images slaughtered like this on daytime television.

"You look like you're trying to set the TV on fire," Dad mused, a smirk on his face. I turned my icy blue eyes on his dark eyes.

"Sorry, I just hate that guy," I replied honestly.

"Can't imagine why, he's so tolerant and pro-vampire. I wonder what he'd do if he knew there were other things."

"Probably start a modern day witch hunt. Not that he hasn't already." My frown deepened. "I swear, if I hadn't gotten there in time, he would've been the first to go. And then Nahla. Then Kaelin. And, if their monarchy works anything like ours, I would have insisted that they all go deep throat cacti and then do a couple shots of Everclear."

"And people think we're the evil masterminds," Alcide teased me with a lopsided grin. "I'm just glad none of us have ever pissed you off that much."

"I didn't think anyone can piss me off that much," I admitted ruefully. "But somehow this long lost family and that crazy-ass reverend have. It's only fair to my temper that I follow through, right?"

Before anyone could humor me with an answer, our meals arrived. During the meal we talked about things of a slightly lighter nature, leaving about an hour later. Of course, not before I had ordered something to go for Sookie. Poor girl was probably starving by now if she were awake. And, as if to prove me right, she was scrounging around the kitchen when we got back.

"Sook, I brought you food," I broke her actions of scavenging for food.

"Aline, you're an angel," she declared, happily taking the food from me. "Oh, hi Alcide," she greeted, "Jackson."

"Afternoon, Sookie," Dad tilted his head politely. Alcide gave her a gentle smile. I raised an eyebrow at him when she wasn't looking. He tried to play it off as if nothing had happened. Well, damn, Sookie, you just have guys falling all over you, I thought with a mental chuckle.

Sookie, naturally, offered us some food before digging into it. "Oh god, Ali, this is amazing," she murmured between mouthfuls.

"It sounded like something you'd like," I shrugged with a grin, sitting next to her. I turned my attention to my family. "Are you guys staying until later?"

Alcide and Jackson exchanged a glance before nodding. "We haven't seen Godric in awhile," Alcide replied first. "So we may as well hang around for a few more hours."

I raised an eyebrow. "And there won't be any staking involved?"

"No," Jackson chuckled. "I won't stake this one. Actually, I rather like him." He gave me a wry smile. "You know as much as a man can like the man that's sharing a bed with his daughter."

"I'll ignore that last part," I replied dismissively. Alcide chuckled, ruffling my hair and taking the seat at the end of the table beside me.

* * *

_Thank you so much for reviewing, **Jupiter Water Goddess**, **Ericsbee**, **OrangePlasticGummyBear**, and **MistressLoki1618**! I always look forward to reading all of your reviews._

_**Enigma013**: You're amazing for reviewing so thoroughly! That certainly was the longest review I've ever gotten. :)  
_

_**Birdy Main**: I'm a little confused by the point I think you were trying to make, so correct me if I'm wrong; Aline was already privy to this information, just not the information of him coming to visit. If I missed your point, please feel free to correct me. :)  
_

_Thank you all for reviewing (and subscribing!), I love getting feedback.  
_

_~Lynn  
_


	15. Into the Spin

When Godric and Eric rose from their slumber that evening, they joined us in the kitchen. Eric was rather surprised that both Alcide and Jackson had offered to stay until dark with Sookie and I. Well, I was barely in attendance. I was more so examining my nails. Even though Michael was around—somewhere. I had a feeling he was probably being given some super secret orders or something. That's what I usually chalk up his flakiness to. Because, let's face it, angels aren't exactly known for being unreliable. At least not Michael. I wondered again why exactly he was protecting me. Any time I inquired too closely to the subject, he would shut me down and lock out any answers I could possibly glean from him. Even most of his thoughts were safe from my telepathy. I knew it was probably for my own cosmic well being (whatever that meant) but it still made me a little uneasy that I couldn't pinpoint exactly what, when, where, and whom with that man. Lately I've been learning that I'm more of a control freak than usual. Or I'm just admitting it more than usual. (More like admitting it more than ever.)

A shiver ran down my spine, setting a certain coldness within my chest. I was going to find out exactly why Michael was here. And if it would cost me anything like Nahla and Kaelin had neglected to tell me. Surely there was some debt I was incurring as part of being protected by the Archangel of War. I'm sure there were bigger things to tend to other than some twenty-one-year-old werewolf/faerie hybrid.

"Aline?" Alcide raised his eyebrows at me. I looked up from my fingernails to find everyone at the table staring at me.

"Oh, uhm, what? I'm sorry," I apologized vaguely. They exchanged glances. "I'm fine," I snapped. Eric's blue eyes snapped to mine, a frown on his face. I held his attention until he looked away. My gaze slid back to Alcide.

"We were talking about leaving Dallas tonight," he began slowly, still scrutinizing me. I stifled the irritation rising in the back of my throat, forcing my face into a mask totally devoid of emotion. "We weren't sure what would be the best way to transfer you back." Transfer me back? It made me sound like an article of clothing, I noted dryly.

"You would always be able to fly with Eric, Sookie, and myself," Godric transitioned smoothly. "But your brother and your father were curious if you would like to ride back with them."

"Wouldn't it be suspicious for me to ride with you?" I questioned. "Edgington would expect you to never leave me out of your sight—if nothing else."

"Aline, are you alright?" Sookie asked, concern and warmth filling her eyes.

"I'm fine," I muttered, pushing myself away from the table and stalking out of the room. There was a murmur of voices in the room after I left. Quite clearly, my abrupt exit had raised some questions in their minds. I retreated to Godric's room, staring out into the Dallas skyline. The door softly opened behind me. I didn't have to look to know that it would be Godric. My suspicions were confirmed when a pair of cool arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me against his frame. I settled against him silently, not turning my gaze away from the window.

"Aline, what's wrong?" He prodded gently. When I didn't answer, he sighed. "We're worried about you."

"What do you know about Michael?" I inquired lightly.

"Not very much. Only what has been handed down through time," he admitted. "Is that what's bothering you?"

"Not entirely. I'm confused as to why he's here, first of all. But I'm more concerned about the wary feeling I get whenever I think about it. And the fact that he's less than willing to share anything about it—well, I just don't like the whole idea after what Kaelin and Nahla did. There has to be some kind of debt I'm getting myself involved with that I don't even want to incur." I pulled away slightly to face him. "Or am I just insane?"

"No, I've been wondering the same thing myself." There was a brief moment of silence. "You're going to get the information out of him, aren't you?"

I nodded. "One way or another." An idea began forming in the back of my mind. Godric noticed the emotion flit across my face.

"I always get a little worried when you have that look on your face."

"Don't worry. You and Eric are safe from my musings." I pulled away from him, then, and turned to leave the room. I paused with my hand on the doorknob. "I'll fly with the three of you. Alcide and Jackson should head back to Mississippi without any news of my reappearance." I felt his stare on the back of my head. "Yes," I answered his silent question. I didn't need to use my telepathy to know that he knew of my plans.

"They don't have the right to know?"

"It's safer for them this way," I argued, turning my sharp blue eyes to his wide emerald ones. "They can't miss what they never got back, can they?"

Before he could argue any further, I pulled the door open and left. I entered the kitchen, drawing the attention of Eric, Sookie, Alcide, Jackson, and the newly returned Michael. The archangel's eyes were locked with mine. He knew that something had changed in my demeanor. And that I would no longer accept a runaround answer. I broke eye contact with him, turning to Eric and Sookie. "Eric, perhaps you should show Sookie around the property before we leave," I half-ordered him.

He opened his mouth to argue.

"Eric, listen to her," Godric replied from the doorway. He locked eyes with Godric, trying to read and feel his maker's emotions through their bond. When he couldn't, he ushered the very confused blonde quarter-fae out of the kitchen.

"Michael," I addressed him simply. The angel turned his eyes to face me. I didn't bother to seat myself at the table with the rest of them, neither did Godric. In fact, Godric didn't even come into the kitchen fully. Instead he remained in the doorway. A silent sign of resigned support. "I would like you to explain why exactly you're here."

"You know that I can't—"

"And don't feed me that bullshit line about it altering my ability to follow my designated path," I interrupted with a snap. He stared at me for a few moments before his mouth seemed to move of its own accord.

"There is going to be a war. It is why I was selected out of all other angels," he began. "You are to be a key instrument in this war because of your unique disposition to the world. The outcome of this war will either unite or permanently sever some connections within this realm."

"The war in the faerie realm?"

"It is a direct tie to the war that will be had here."

"They're going to be involved?"

"It will cease to be a civil war, yes."

"And the company that I keep?"

He was silent. I listened to his thoughts, picking up nothing other than the sharp metallic scent of blood.

"That's what I thought. You angels are no better than faeries," I hissed at him. "Deceit and deception will bring you nothing but misfortune."

"Aline, what the fuck is going on?" Alcide questioned. Dad, however, was studying us silently.

"We're going to die for her," Jackson replied, his eyes flicking from Michael to myself. Neither of us answered. "That is not such a bad death—"

"No," I replied. "No one is dying for me." I turned my head slightly to Godric, thinking of the close call I had had with him just a few days ago.

"Well you can't send us away," Alcide argued. "There's no way we would just leave you when there's a chance to help you."

"Not willingly," I relented. The two werewolves exchanged glances as I grabbed their hands. My blue eyes held the two of them at attention as my will overtook theirs. "After you leave here tonight, you will have no recollection of these events today. Or the phone call I made yesterday. You will still believe that I am dead. And it will be too painful to see any of my companions again. Just remember that I loved the both of you dearly. I always have and I always will. Instead of being in Dallas for me, you were in Dallas for a small job. A very kind old man who needed a new set of cabinets. It only took you a day to fashion and install them. He paid you handsomely. Direct deposit into the company savings account."

Alcide and Jackson were the first to leave Godric's now previous home. Both were under the assumption that they would be seeing me again next week. Until daybreak, at least. Then my glamour would override their memories. "What if they remember what happened?" Godric questioned once their truck was out of sight.

"There's a very, very remote chance of that happening," I replied dully. "And it's never happened before." He was silent. "I'm not happy with it, either. But I'd never forgive myself if they died for me. No matter how willingly they went."

"Are you going to do that to me? Or Eric? Or Sookie?"

I shook my head. "No, I don't think I can override your claim. And I think the faeries will want Sookie's help. Do you really think Eric would let her do that alone? He cares about her more than he's letting on." I rubbed my temples. "I know you don't approve of me tampering with their memories, but can you tone down the waves of emotions?"

"Sorry," I heard him say as I stepped off of the porch. I climbed into the car that was waiting with Sookie and Eric in the back. Michael was driving. Sookie immediately touched my hand in concern.

"Aline, what's going on?"

I offered her a sad, tired smile, patting her hand. Godric climbed into the front seat of the car beside Michael. The ride to the airport was silent. The five of us climbed aboard the plane that was waiting. Godric and Eric had bought every ticket on board it appeared. That was probably better. I could pass along the information to Sookie and Eric, now.

After the plane took off, I began my explanations. Sookie immediately looked concerned. "Aline, you shouldn't have done that—"

"I would do it to all of you, too, if I could. But the faeries will probably pull you into it," I reasoned, "and Eric won't like that. If Eric is involved, then Godric will surely get involved if I could even manage to override the bond we have." Michael nodded silently.

"The five of you are where you are supposed to be," he agreed with me. "Alcide and Jackson are supposed to be here as well. But you've gone and changed that."

"They've done less than anything even close to warranting such a demise. Besides, they only know me through chance. My mother was of no relation to the Herveaux. They have no obligation to be here."

"Not even if they want to be?" Eric questioned.

"Not even then."

He studied me with a shake of his head, getting up and going into what I presumed was the area that held all of the drinks. My suspicions were confirmed when he came back with a True Blood for himself and one for Godric a few moments later. The ride to Shreveport was uncomfortably silent and we arrived only an hour before dawn was supposed to break. By the time we had gotten back to Eric's home and the vampires had situated, dawn was beginning to break.

I stood at the window in the dining room, watching the sunrise. Gently, I began to sing:

"_Arms out, arms out, turn into the spin. It's lovely and brief with just gravity and me. And if we choose to fall, who's to say it isn't flight? So here we go back again, it's lovely and brief with just gravity and me."_

And, then, the day had risen. I turned away from the sunlight, back into the familiar spin of my thoughts.

* * *

**_TinkSalvatore24_**_: Aline's name is pronounced A-leen. (So the shorter form, Ali, should be pronounced as A-lee.)_

_**Jupiter Water Goddess**: I'm fairly certain that some vampire poets would have graced the literary scene. I mean, there are vampire musicians, right? ;)_

**_Birdy Main_**_: Thanks for pointing this out, I'll have to take a closer look into it. (Revision is the bane of my existence, I swear.)  
_

_**treewitch703**: I revealed a bit in this chapter, but Michael is also an archangel of war. He'll really come into play a little further down the road.  
_

_**MistressLoki1618**, **Anonymous**, and **OrangePlasticGummyBear** thank you so much for reviewing!_

_I love reading all of your reviews. Hope you enjoyed the new chapter. (Well, as much as is possible with Aline's stubborn streak. And something of a first fight between Aline and Godric.)  
_

_Keep an eye out for another update soon.  
_

_~Lynn  
_

_P.S. The title for this chapter as well as those lines from the song Aline sings are from a song titled "Into the Spin" by Dessa Darling of Doomtree. She's really unique as far as rappers are concerned. (Well, so is the whole collaborative, really. But she has a heavy classical background that this song exemplifies.) And it's one of her slightly more gentle songs. But I thought it fit very nicely. So I stake no claim into that little section of the story. It's entirely of Dessa's design and used at my leisure. Give it a listen here: /ucNDCRk_RvE  
_


	16. Enough

Most of my day was spent in Eric's library. No one had come to bother me—not even when the sun had set for at least an hour. Varying books were scattered around me on the floor. I hadn't read more than a sentence of any of them. There simply wasn't anything in me that wanted to concentrate on literature badly enough to snap my mind into focus. And so I had read a few words of each before tossing them aside and selecting another. But none held the words that I was looking for. What exactly _was _I looking for?

I finally stood with a sigh. "Nahla," I called out hesitantly. "Nahla, I know someone's watching me. If it isn't you, I demand your presence."

When the air around me remained calm and still, I furrowed my brows.

"Goddammit, faeries! I demand some sort of faerie presence, _now_." A few of the books on the surrounding bookshelves fell off with my conviction.

With a chilled _pop_ Bahari appeared before me. "Nahla should be here shortly," he reassured me. "She didn't think you would ever want our presence again."

"I didn't either," I remarked lightly. "But I figured we should have a meeting of the minds." I studied him. "You might want to mask that faerie scent. The vampires are up."

Bahari nodded. A few seconds later, Nahla appeared. Worry laced her voice: "Aline? What is all the fuss about?"

"I'll explain. Mask your scent and follow me."

"You wish for us to accompany you near the vampires?"

"'A meeting of the minds,'" Bahari quoted me. "I think we owe her at least that much." He strode by me without a care in the world. Nahla's face twisted into a distinct look of discomfort before she followed me, sulking the entire way.

I descended the stairs, finding Michael reading in the living room, sprawled neatly on the couch. He put down his book, looking at the three of us with raised eyebrows. "Michael, have you seen—," Eric began, walking into the living room. He stopped short when he noticed the faeries at my side. "Who are they?"

"My faerie godmother, Nahla," I motioned. "And Bahari."

"Ah, they must be the compensation for making my maker so sulky," he smirked at them, clearly sensing Nahla's terror. "They're rather small, but I guess they'll be adequate snacks." His fangs extended, glinting dangerously. Nahla took a leap behind me. Bahari simply stood there, raising a slender dark eyebrow. "Godric! Aline brought us some snacks."

Godric appeared beside Eric, raising an eyebrow in curious confusion. Sookie, hearing all of the commotion, came into the living room with the rest of us.

"Thanks for making my job of summoning everyone easy, Eric," I shot him a look of light amusement. "But I thought that we should all sit down and swap information." I gave Michael a stern look. "You, too. I know you can do it."

"I'm not supposed to," he shook his head. "We've been thrown out for less than what I did last night."

"If anyone has a problem with it, they can take it up with me," I waved him off. "You must know what's going to set it off, right?"

"Aline, I cannot tell you—"

I threw a collection of water energy at him, thoroughly soaking both him and Eric's couch.

"At least it's leather," Eric quipped with an eye roll. I shot him an unamused stare. Clearly I was trying to make myself appear superior to Michael. I didn't need Eric undermining my authority with his sense of humor. Next time, I'm going for the suede, I decided silently. The Viking must have sensed a change in my resolve because his smirk turned into a look of caution.

"Really? You're throwing metaphysical water balloons at me?" Michael grumbled, trying to wipe the water off of himself. I stared evenly.

"Share."

"I was warned that you could be a bully, but I didn't think you would—" Ice cold water splashed him in the face.

"Aline, is this really wise?" Nahla asked anxiously. She clearly didn't like me picking on an archangel. But this method had worked before. Maybe I could force him to talk again.

"That's cute," he muttered at me darkly. I blew ice onto his hair, effectively freezing it into place. He was getting irritated now. I could tell from the way his nostrils flared. A devious grin flashed on my face. "Alin—"

Soon, I was pelting him with as many hydrokinetic ideas as I could possibly come up with. Ice coated water bombs. Water bombs with an icy center. Pure water. Freezing water. Water and then ice. Ice and then scalding hot water.

"ENOUGH!" The archangel roared, standing to his full height, wings visible and extended behind him. I stood eyelevel with him, refusing to back down, keeping my breathing even despite his huffiness. "I know why I was chosen for you now," he said slowly. "Gabriel and Samael surely would have killed you by now. Or themselves."

"Lucky you have a stronger backbone than that," I replied evenly, a light smirk gracing my lips.

"A vampire is going to drain one of the faeries," he relented. Nahla took a terrified step back, hiding behind Bahari. He shot her a disapproving look even though she was clearly his superior. "This will cause a retaliation. The faeries will begin to trick vampires into extinction."

"How is that even possible?"

"Drinking our blood allows a vampire to walk in the sunlight for varying periods of time," Bahari supplied. "However, it is like alcohol to them. It impairs their judgment. Quite a few vampires have met the sun without ever realizing it because of this."

I stared at Bahari, shocked by this knowledge, and then back to Michael.

"They will recruit the help of whatever witches are willing to take a stand. And, I'm sorry to say, necromancy is becoming rather popular again since vampires have revealed themselves to the world." He paused. "Vampires have many enemies. Simply a fact of nature or one that has been earned over time. They will have no hesitance in joining the fae in their quest to rid the world of their existence."

"How many vampires exist?"

"Not nearly enough," Michael replied grimly. "Which is why you play such a necessary part. You are half fae and werewolf. Werewolves are, for the most part, natural enemies with vampires. And I'm sure you're familiar with the boundaries between faeries and vampires."

"So what exactly am I supposed to do?"

He hesitated. "You are supposed to become an activist. A peaceful one," he added quickly. His eyes connected with Godric's. "And Godric will help you with this cause." Then he looked at Sookie and Eric. "The two of you will also be up for some speculation. Similar to your President and his family."

"You did not just compare me to the President," I frowned. He shot me an amused, wry grin. "Okay, when is all of this supposed to happen?"

Michael paused, his eyes becoming as distant as they had when Bill was supposed to discover who I was and take me to the Queen. "Tonight, actually."

My eyebrows shot up. "Excuse me?"

Eric was instantly on his phone, calling in favors for information while I tried to get more information out of Michael. When he refused to tell me anything else, I made a dash for the door. His warm strong arms were immediately around me, holding me firmly away from the front entrance. "There is nothing you can do, Aline. If you go, you will be drained as well."

"You don't know that!"

"It's done," Eric reported, an angry look on his face. He stared at his phone in a mixture of disgust and disbelief. "Bill procreated and failed to properly educate his progeny on the ethics of mainstreaming it seems."

"Motherfucking Bill Compton," Sookie swore as I growled. Some day, I was going to have that vampire's head on a silver platter. Salome would have been proud, had she still been alive. (Surprisingly, I'm rather well acquainted with the Bible. At least the parts that were actually interesting and not psychobabble. Such as a seductress asking for a man's head on a silver platter.)

"He didn't even realize who the woman was or why she turned to dust," Eric shook his head.

"I'm going to stake that bastard," I declared.

"'An eye for an eye will make the world blind,'" Michael cautioned me.

"Fuck the world. We have Braille."

"I think Gandhi is a little far off for you, yet," Bahari mused. "We'll deal with this Compton man later. For now, we should be working on ways to fix what has just been broken." He turned to Nahla. "Nahla, go seek counsel from Kaelin. Explain to him the severity of the situation if he isn't already aware. I will stay here and help to contain whatever damage I can."

She opened her mouth to argue, but closed it again. Instead, she planted a kiss on his forehead. "Be careful, my son." And then she was gone. Sookie had stepped outside with Eric's phone to call in a few favors from the supernaturals that she knew. Eric had accompanied her to do the same after she had finished. That left Godric, Michael, Bahari, and I discussing possible plans of action.

"The American Vampire League will probably seek our help," Godric mused, earning a nod from Michael. "Which means that the majority of the Authority will probably want to get involved. They're very concerned about the wellbeing of their mainstreaming agenda."

"If all goes well, our Kingdom should stand apart from the rest of the faeries. I assume that Maab will more than likely head the vampire hunts."

"Maybe parts of the other kingdoms will stand in our alliance once Kaelin makes a decision to," I offered hopefully.

"It's possible. Maab would use this to her advantage to promote the destruction of the tether between our two realms. The opposition for this ruling has been steadily increasing."

"So it's a long shot, but it's a shot nonetheless."

"Yes." There was a pair of _pops_ from kitchen. Kaelin and Nahla both entered the living room respectively.

"Maab has already gotten word that one of her granddaughters has been drained," Kaelin informed us. "She is campaigning for support to seek vengeance. And some of our kind are not hesitating in their decision."

"But we will stand with you," Nahla reassured me. "Queen Serphina and King Damek have also offered whatever support they can gain from their kingdoms. It is not as much power as Maab has behind her, but there is more conviction within our ranks."

"It's not much," Sookie replied as she came into the room, "but I've managed to call in a few friends. They're going to be recruiting within their circles." She glanced at me. "Sam was happy to hear that you were safe." At least for the moment, I added silently. The look on her face informed me that she was thinking the same thing.

"Thank you, Sookie," I replied honestly. She nodded, taking the empty seat next to me. Eric entered a few moments later.

"I found some people willing to help as well. They're also going to use whatever pull they can to get us more manpower." I nodded. "This is the last time I offer to baby sit mortals."

* * *

_Thank you, **treewitch703**, **Ericsbee**, **OrangePlasticGummyBear**, and **enigma013**, for reviewing so quickly! _

_There will be more up in a few days, but I originally started this for Camp NaNoWriMo since I had no inspiration whatsoever for anything other than, well, fanfiction lately. And I simply enjoy writing this too much to stop now! :)_

_I should continue to update this fairly regularly (especially on weekends) up until maybe August if I do that Camp NaNoWriMo as well. I'll more than likely continue to update through August if I decide to do it anyway, though. It just won't be as frequently. (Maybe?)  
_

_But, until then, expect some more Aline and Godric.  
_

_~Lynn  
_


	17. Vampires Are Like the Government

That was three days ago. Now, we were currently being taken in to the Vampire Authority's studio that they use for live broadcasting. I wrung my hands nervously. I wasn't exactly nervous about being on TV per se; rather, I was nervous about what effect this could have on the delicate weavings war was slowly introducing into our world. Humans had been made aware that other supernatural beings existed—a fact that terrified most of them into hostility. They fear the unknown and the misunderstood. The supernatural is both.

"Are you alright?" Godric asked me quietly. I forced a smile at him, placing my palm to his cheek and drawing him in for a kiss.

"I'm sorry I've been so horrible to you lately," I admitted.

"It doesn't matter," he waved it aside, pulling me against him. "I will stand by your decisions because I love you." I pulled away from him slightly, a smile crossing my face.

"I love you, too." He returned my smile, leaning in to kiss me.

"I hate to interrupt," Nan Flanagan said loudly, "but we need to seat you on the couches now." She shot a triumphant smirk at ruining such a Kodak moment and strutted over to the chair reserved for her.

"If I wasn't afraid of the consequences, I would stake her," I grumbled.

"I heard that, mutt."

"I'm glad, hag." She huffed, her features tightening in anger, as the camera men began the countdown until we were on air. I settled into the side of the couch closest to Nan, as had been discussed. Godric sat on my other side.

"We're live in five, four, three," the director said, silently counting down to zero after that.

"We have Nan Flanagan here live to tell us a little more about the issues at hand," the female reporter announced smoothly. "Nan?"

"Hi Jennifer," Nan replied just as smoothly, her surly nature disappearing in a flash. The smile on her face almost made me forget how much of a bitch she really was. Almost. "I'd like to introduce my two companions, Godric and Aline Herveaux."

"Welcome Godric and Aline," Jennifer said brightly. "Are you both vampires?"

"Godric is but I am not," I replied.

"Oh? Are you part of another supernatural clan that has just made their existences known?"

"I am."

"Could you enlighten our viewers as to what exactly that is?"

"I'm half werewolf and half fae."

"Werewolf? I thought they were all big surly men."

"Hardly," I smiled with a chuckle.

"Learn something new every day. But you said that you're part fae?"

"Yes."

"Aren't faeries and vampires supposed to be enemies?"

"Werewolves and faeries should be, too," I pointed out lightly. "But it really just depends on that particular person. I'd liken it to the human notion of being racist."

"That's an interesting way to look at it. How long have the two of you been a couple?"

"Aline has been my mate for just shy of three years," Godric answered.

"That's wonderful," Jennifer replied honestly. She was certainly human—but more fascinated with our existences than anything else. "I have been told that you two are going to be the new faces for the peaceful regime in this war. Is this true?"

"It is," I replied with a nod. "We're living examples that not only can we peacefully coexist but we can also form friendships and partnerships with one another."

"And the American Vampire League is in favor of coexistence with all races, not just humans?"

"We believe that all beings should have equal rights," Nan replied. "Vamprie, werewolf, faerie—it doesn't really matter much to us. We have all existed within the same existence for centuries without very many problems. I refuse to believe that one incapable vampire maker should be responsible for all of our fates."

"I certainly agree with you. But surely there are vampires who disagree."

"Of course there are. We have opposition in politics that are no different from the Republicans and Democrats that mainstream your politics. However, the majority of us do seek equal rights. And those that do not are reprimanded within our Authority."

"Similar to our prisons, right?"

"Right." Nan had a good poker face, I'd give her that. Eric and Godric had told me some stories about the AVL and the Authority before actually meeting some of them. And they were not pretty stories. They were nothing like human prisons. But a little wool over their eyes wouldn't hurt.

"Well, thank you so much for taking the time to speak with us but we've run out of time."

"Thank you for having us on," Nan flashed a pretty smile as the cameras went off air. She took her microphone off followed by her earpiece. Her expression was immediately normal again—neutral with just a touch of revulsion.

"You handle yourself fairly well on television," she commented. "Ever thought about becoming an on air personality?"

"No," I shook my head. "I don't particularly like being on camera." I found the nearest bathroom to wash the makeup off of my face. It's something I hardly ever wear because my skin seems to greatly dislike it. So I try not to wear it for too long on the days that I'm forced into wearing it. As I was washing it off, I wondered if Alcide and Jackson would have seen the broadcast. Surely somehow the news would get back to them. I frowned. Alcide would kick my ass from here to next Thursday for not letting him big brother me. And Jackson would more than likely give me a few earfuls. I sighed. Damage control would be enforced if need be. Until then, I had bigger things to worry about.

Godric was waiting for me patiently when I emerged from the bathroom. "The Authority has requested our presence."

"The entire Authority?"

He nodded. "Nan received a phone call from the Guardian." I bit back the nervous laugh that threatened to break free and simply nodded. He grasped my hand in reassurance, gently leading me to where Nan was waiting. The three of us piled into the car that was waiting outside. She opted to sit up front with the driver. (She never has liked me much. The feeling is mutual.)

The ride there was quiet and, about twenty or so minutes from their Headquarters, Nan made us slip on blindfolds. When the car pulled to a halt, she and the driver (whose name I had learned was Hayes) helped us into the building. We went down several stories in an elevator before Nan was ordered to take our blindfold off. She pulled mine off, giving a rather unhappy look to the man and woman who stood before us.

"Aline Herveaux and Godric of Gaul," she introduced us. "This is the Guardian and Chancellor Salome." I raised my eyebrows in surprise. Well I'll be damned. I wonder how many other Biblical figures are running around unnoticed by society? Certainly food for thought at a later date.

"Your interview was quite impressive," Salome spoke warmly to us. Her voice held a distinctly unrecognizable accent similar to Godric's. Then again, he had mentioned that he was older than Jesus. They must be close in age.

"It was quite impressive," the Guardian nodded.

"I hope that it will gain us some positive momentum among other races." Her lips curved back into a smile. It didn't take me very long to figure out that she would have to be regarded with some suspicion. She appeared to be the type of person to use her charms to her advantage when she wanted something. It made me inclined to like her more than my previous notions had allowed.

"The others are waiting." The Guardian and Salome led us to a room with a large table as its main attraction. There were a few other vampires seated around the table and they all looked up expectantly when we entered. Two empty seats were at the end of the table. "Please, have a seat."

Godric and I took those seats as Salome and the Guardian took what I presumed to be their regular seats. "You don't smell very much like a faery," the child vampire addressed me, his eyes regarding me with suspicion.

"I can mask my scent," I replied, studying him. I had the funny feeling I was about to greatly dislike him.

"You don't smell like a wolf, either."

"I can mask my scent," I repeated patiently. Godric grasped my hand with a gentle, warning squeeze. Roman, the Guardian, waved his hand dismissively.

"It doesn't really matter what you smell like. Humans can't smell that anyway."

"I'm sorry to interrupt," a vampire explained as she ran into the room. She must work in a more technical department, I guessed. "But you really need to turn on the news."

"Now is not the time for you to turn into an activist," the short-haired redhead frowned at the woman. The latter of the two shot the former a dirty look as she made a grab for the remote on the table. She began punching in numbers until it settled on the news channel.

"I just—oh, just watch it!"

A vampire was holding up a man's spine on live television. I stared, slack jawed, at the man. He licked his fingers, before pushing the dead man out of his chair. "Equal rights? Why would we seek equal rights with _you_? _You_ are not our equals," he smiled maliciously.

"Who is that?" I asked Godric quietly.

"That is Russell Edgington," he murmured, eyes glued to the screen. His entire attention was on the television. And he looked anything but pleased. I had never seen him so…I'm not even sure how to describe it. It's almost like he shut down out of anger?

"We will eat you—after we eat your children," Edgington concluded with a delightfully malevolent smile. "Now time for the weather, Tiffany?"

Roman switched off the television quietly. Before any of us had time to process what was happening, the Guardian had punched a hole into the heavy stone wall. I think the rest of us were too shocked and lamented to properly react. That crazy son of a bitch had just destroyed several solid days—and years before that—of hard work toward the goal of coexistence. All it took was five minutes to shatter everything. Five fucking minutes. I wanted to smack my head off of the table in front of me.

Godric sensed this emotion and shot me a look of sympathy. He evidently felt the same way. Whatever had been going through his mind earlier was clearly gone now.

"Well, that certainly puts a damper on things," Salome noted.

"That's one word for it," Roman agreed, wiping dried blood off of his knuckles.

"How are we going to deal with this?" the vampire child demanded. I still couldn't get over the fact that he was merely a small child. Then again, he's probably at least five times my age. That's also weird to think about considering that he looks ten.

"He pretty much just made our television stunt worthless," I muttered sourly. Then I decided that I wanted Russell Edgington's head on a silver platter right next to Bill Compton's. That would make me feel at least a little better about this whole thing.

"Your faerie relatives," Salome addressed me, "would they be willing to appear on television?"

"I can be persuasive," I replied, interested to see what they wanted to ask of them.

"Would they be willing to appear with a few of our well known faces?" Roman asked, picking up where Salome had left off.

"I'm sure I could work something out if it would help me. Kaelin still feels like he owes me the world for abandoning me here as a child. But some of them are also a little terrified that you're going to drain them like a juice-box."

"Ah, the notions of guilt," Salome chuckled. "I assure you, however, that we will not be drinking them dry. Is your father very influential in the Otherworld?"

"People tend to follow him. My one aunt and uncle have also pledged their allegiance to our side. There's at least a decent amount of pull behind him."

Roman nodded. He pressed a button on the intercom system that rested at the head of the table in front of his seat. "Please send in Nan Flanagan."

A few seconds later, she entered.

"Begin damage control. Arrange for the King of the, uh," he glanced at me for help.

"Water," I replied.

"King of the Water Fae and a few of his relatives to appear with you. Pull whatever familiar names out of your hat that you can."

"Yes, sir," she nodded curtly. Turning, she began to leave.

"Oh, and Nan." She stopped and faced him. "Try not to fuck this one up. One more and you're done." Her mouth tightened. She left us. "Right, now back to the original order of business." He resumed sitting next to Salome and the child vampire. "We had been going to host a small celebration in your honor but that seems rather superfluous at the moment. Instead, I wanted to speak to you about Queen Sophie Ann."

"What for?" I asked curiously.

"It seems that she wanted to hold you captive against your will a few years ago." I remained silent, staring at him evenly. "I figured the rumors were probably true. Especially after the information came from one of her most loyal servants."

"Two of them, actually," Salome agreed. "One not so loyal. But that worked to our advantage." I must have looked extremely confused because she sent me a reassuring smile. "Eric Northman and William Compton."

"Your progeny is rather protective of her," the redheaded woman remarked. "I didn't really understand why until I saw the two of you together."

"Which is precisely why she has been fired from her post as queen," Roman continued. I looked at Godric in surprise. He had on his vampire poker face so he was hiding his surprise well, but I felt a glimpse of it dash across our bond. "We wish to offer the position to Godric, if he'll have it."

Godric studied Roman quietly. "I am flattered by this offer," he began slowly, almost as if the words were foreign upon his tongue. (Which, I guess that they actually are. His native language died several centuries over.) "But I must respectfully decline it."

"Is there any particular reason?" Salome asked, her eyes calculating him.

"I have never really had much of a desire for it," he admitted, "and I have found a better use for my time." A smirk graced his features as he squeezed my hand. "There would be no use for me to rule over Louisiana."

"I see," Roman mused.

"What about Northman? He is Sheriff of Area Five," the child vampire suggested.

"What are your thoughts on the matter? As his maker?"

All eyes turned to Godric.

"I would say that that is a very wise decision," Godric smiled lightly. "Eric would be happy with that offer. And I do believe that he would make a fine King."

"He does make a fine Sheriff," Salome agreed. She turned to Roman, her eyes clearly bearing the answer. He glanced around the table. Nobody disagreed. "That's settled then. One of us will be there by tomorrow night to crown him."

Vampires kind of work like the government as a façade. But, for the most part, they're more controlling than that. Anyone who is in power is also powerless. But I suppose our government is exactly the same way. Never mind. They _are_ like the government. Just more badass. And certainly far more civilized than werewolves are in this manner. They don't eat each other. (At least not that I know of. I asked Marc once before and he denied that they did. But Marc denied a lot that was true. I'll have to ask Godric at a later date.)

"That is all, you're dismissed. There is a car waiting out front for you," Roman smiled influentially at Salome.

"I'll escort you out," she replied dutifully as she rose. She led us out so gracefully that I had to double check that she was actually walking. There were some vampires that could fly simply because of how old they were. Both Eric and Godric were able to. It was quite impressive, really. That surely meant that Salome could as well.

She entered the security code into the elevator to bring us to the main floor. After that, she even walked us out to the car. "It was wonderful to meet you, Aline," she clasped my hand as I went to get into the car. "You greatly intrigue me. I look forward to seeing you again." With a smile and a gentle squeeze of my hand, she turned and walked back to the Authority's headquarters. I got in the car with an expression of confusion written clearly on my face.

"Sometimes I fear that you are too well liked," Godric admitted as he slid into the car next to me. I noted that Hayes was once again our driver.

"Don't worry," I reassured him, "I do, too." He chuckled, pulling me against him. "But I did tell you that I wasn't going to make this easy for you."

"And you most certainly haven't." He ran his fingers through my hair, calming the jittery nerves that Russell's spine-ripping-habits had conjured in the pits of my stomach. I nestled further against him, anxious to see Eric's face whenever he was propositioned to be king. No doubt he would have that silly triumphant Viking smirk plastered on his face. A smile spread across mine.

My god, I love my vampire family. Pam included.

* * *

_I'm simply atrocious at updating. Sorry about that. But I kept getting your reviews, favorites, etc., in my inbox sooooo I forced myself to continue the story. Time is very much not my friend at the moment (eek, three jobs!), but I'll TRY to keep updating this. Just keep giving me those nudges. ;)_

_I unfortunately don't remember where I stopped thanking people and all of that stuff. So, just know that I appreciate **ALL** of you very dearly. You're the only reason that this even got posted.  
_

_Also: I just _had_ to include Russell Edgington's little newscaster stint. One of my favorite scenes from True Blood. Oddly likeable villain and all._

_Enjoy.  
_

_~Lynn  
_


	18. Payback

We arrived at Eric's home with a little time to spare before dawn. Eric, however, wasn't home. And Sookie had apparently finally gone back to her own home in Bon Temps. Michael was in the living room waiting for us. "I saw the news," he greeted vaguely.

"Which part? The one where we assured America that all vampires want is equality or the one where Russell Edgington ripped out some poor news reporter's spine?" I asked darkly.

"Both," he replied. "The network has been running your segments ever fifteen minutes though. Even during commercials. So I'm hoping that some of the other networks pick up and do the same."

I sank into the couch beside him while Godric went into the kitchen for a True Blood. "Do you think they will?"

"It's hard to say. I can't see their futures as clearly because I've been so closely tethered to yours," he admitted. "But it's a possibility. A very strong one." I sat beside him on the couch, my eyes focusing on the channels he was flipping through. Most of the daily broadcasts had been interrupted with the breaking news of Russell Edgington. I don't think that the President even gets this much attention.

"Then let's hope that humans are smarter than any of us give them credit for."

"One of our greatest downfalls is our pride," Godric mused as he came back into the room. "We never think anyone else is capable of doing things as well as we ourselves." He handed me a bottle of cream soda—my favorite. God, even in one of the worst situations he's still pretty damn near perfect. I smiled a bit at the thought. Before I could make any sort of comment, the front door opened.

A rather pleased looking Eric practically skipped through the front door. Yes, that's right. Our mighty, towering, blood-thirsty blond Viking was practically skipping through his front door with glee. "I'm half afraid to ask why you're so happy, Eric," I eyed him carefully. Asking questions like that was a very dangerous thing with Eric. I've already made the mistake of learning one too many things about the man that I was much happier not knowing. (Not that my silence would really stop him, anyway.)

"That's _King_ Eric," he winked. Godric grinned at him.

"Congratulations, my child." The two began speaking in Swedish while I turned my attention back to the TV. I was happy for Eric—but I was a little spent. How exactly do we recover from this kind of blow? It was hard enough for people to believe we were peaceful without public retaliation from within our masses.

I rubbed my temples as I thought things out.

"You're not going to save the world in a day, kid," Michael reminded me. "Go get some sleep." When I seemed to ignore him, he sighed. "Stubborn, are we?"

"I'm not tired," I lied. I didn't have to look at the archangel beside me to know that he was giving me a look of disapproval. My eyes remained trained on the television, effectively blocking out everything he was saying. It wasn't until he got up to leave that I began to pay attention. And, by then, it was too late. He had already thrown me over his shoulder and was dragging me upstairs. "Michael, put me down!"

I caught a glimpse of both vampires stopping to stare at the commotion before resuming their conversation. Well they're no help. So much for Godric being perfect.

"Goodnight, dear," Michael grinned at me as he put me on the bed, closing the door behind him. I scowled. Though Michael was really the cause of my problems at the moment, I vowed to get some sort of revenge on Godric and His Highness. I mean, after all, they did just stand there and watch until Michael took me away.

When I woke the next morning, however, I was a little less inclined to make all of them pay for forcing me to sleep. I _had_ needed sleep. Godric hadn't even woken me up when he finally came to bed at dawn. And I didn't wake until well after noon—event that was only because the phone had been ringing in my ear. My fingers clumsily reached for the phone beside the bed, knocking several things off in the process. When I finally found it, I answered groggily: "Hello?"

"Aline," Sookie questioned from the other end. I wriggled out from Godric's grasp and sat up straighter. "Sorry, I hope I didn't wake you."

"Eh, I should be up by now anyway. What's up?"

"Well Sam gave me off today and I was hoping that you might want to go shopping with me?"

I sat up a little straighter. Shopping? I hadn't gone shopping in _forever_. A little voice in the back of my head reminded me that I was supposed to speak to my faery relatives today. Screw it. It's daylight right now. What can the vampires really get into right now anyway? They're all dead to the world.

"I would love to," I grinned into the receiver. I was about to tell her that I would have to tell Michael but something stopped me. A smirk crossed my lips. I'll teach him to manhandle me, I decided.

"Awesome, how about I pick you up at Eric's?"

"No, I'll meet you at Merlotte's? We can do lunch there." She agreed and said she would meet me there in about an hour and a half. I got up, getting a quick shower, and refusing to speak to the archangel. He didn't press me for anything, probably assuming that I would try to rip his throat out if he tried.

I gathered up a few books and rested my hand on the back door, drawing his attention. My voice was harsh as my eyes narrowed at him: "I'm just going to read—or can't I do that by myself either?"

"Sorry," he muttered quietly, turning his attention back to the newspaper he had been reading. I closed the door roughly behind me, heading out into the warm Louisiana air. After settling down for a few minutes, I got up, stretched, and made it look like I was going for a walk around the property. When he didn't come looking for me, I took off at a dead sprint in my human form, finding my way to Merlotte's with ease.

Now, if anyone had seen a woman dressed like I was sprinting through the woods without breaking a sweat, they would have known that something was amiss. But they already do, I realized as an afterthought. Werewolves and fae were now common knowledge among humans. I wondered how the people in Merlotte's would react. Sookie was brave for not being worried about being seen with me.

"Aline!" Sookie waved at me as soon as I got inside. She had already procured a booth as far away from people as possible. God I'm really starting to love that girl, I decided as I headed over to her with a grin. I slid into the seat across from her. "Uh, how on earth did you get here?"

When I gave her a quizzical look, she pulled a leaf out of my chocolate hair. I laughed. "Oops. I, uh, kind of ran away. Literally."

"Ran away?"

I nodded, explaining what had progressed last night and then how I had planned on getting even with Michael.

"Your family is going to kill you," she shook her head, a smile playing at her lips. "Eric might, too."

"Hell, so will Godric," I grinned. "But that's half the fun in life. And, since I've gotten back from the faery realm, they haven't let me have much fun here. So I'm very glad that you called."

"Well we're just going to have to have lots of fun today then." I flashed a credit card. "And I just so happen to have Eric's card."

"Aline!"

"Don't worry, I can cover the damages. He said I could use it when he first took me into his care. And he never took it back. I never used it but it sure will be nice to see the look on his face," I grinned. "Mr. King of Louisiana has quite the temper." After that, we quickly dropped the topic of the serious matters that were at hand and began talking about the boys in our lives. Apparently she had agreed to let Eric take her out on _one_ date. They were going to live happily ever after I decided with a grin.

We finished eating and paid Sam before leaving to go to the mall. As we were about to drive away, Alcide's truck began to pull into Merlotte's parking lot.

"Oh shit, go!" I squeaked, hitting Sookie in the arm. She jumped in surprise, her eyes wide. "Sookie!" I hissed, pinching her arm.

"Ow! Ali," she glared at me. I gave her a pleading look. "For a wolf, you're a coward," she grumbled, pulling out of the parking lot. It was too late, though. Alcide had already spotted us. And man did he look _pissed_. I slouched down into my seat helplessly. He was already following us out of Merlotte's.

"Just keep driving. He might get bored."

"He's been convinced that you're dead for the past two-and-a-half years plus the time after you glamoured him," she hissed at me. I gave her a sheepish smile. With a shake of her head, she put on her turn signal and pulled over.

"Traitor!" I declared, jumping out of the car before it was even fully stopped. I heard her yell after me as I took off running.

"ALINE!" Alcide yelled after me, taking off.

"What the hell am I supposed to do?" I heard Sookie call after us. She would probably be waiting there for us when we got back. If we got back. Alcide might actually kill me this time. Just as I thought this, I was tackled to the ground by my brother's larger mass.

"What the hell, Aline!?" he growled, pinning me there under his weight. I looked up at him with narrowed eyes.

"You're supposed to still think I'm dead."

"Still?"

My face froze. Shit. My glamour hadn't been undone. I bit my lip.

"You _glamoured_ me?"

"For your own good!"

"I'm your brother!"

"Michael said you would die," I held up my hands defensively as his nostrils flared, his eyes flashing a startling shade of yellow. That made him stop growling and stare at me.

"What?"

"Michael said that—oh, can you at least get off of me first?! We both know you can outrun me. You're bigger." He got off of me, yanking me to my feet and beginning to walk with me back to Sookie. I explained what had transpired the last time I had seen him and Jackson.

"I understand why you did it," he resented, "but I still don't like that you did it. I'm supposed to protect you, not the other way around."

"But I don't want you to if it means I'm going to lose you," I admitted. "I can't stand the thought of you being dead let alone dying _for _me."

"Little Optimist," he said sternly, "I'm not going to die. Neither will Dad." He put his large hands on my slender shoulders. "Michael's been wrong before, hasn't he? You weren't supposed to disappear."

"Yeah, but—"

"You've done more dangerous stuff for me before."

"But—"

"I'm not finished. It's mostly my fault that Debbie's been trying to kill you for the past five years. She wouldn't try so damn hard if you weren't my sister. Blood or no blood, you _are _my sister. And I will be damned if I'm gonna let you go up against that fucking fanger on your own. You aren't the only one with friends in high places any more." His face softened. "Aline, I love you. And I'm not letting you do this without me."

"Alcide," I said softly, my face faltering as I threw my arms around him. "Why are you such a jerk?"

He hugged me back with a chuckle, resting his chin on top of my head. "It's a family trait."

"You're still a bigger jerk." He laughed, hugging me tightly before planting a kiss on my forehead.

"That may be, but I'm your big brother. It's my God given right." He said goodbye to Sookie and I, informing us that he would be sticking around the area for a bit. There was a job he had to do in Bon Temps. That meant that he would be checking in on me a lot. Crap. I'm going to get away with a lot less now. Or a lot more. Depending on his mood and how good of an idea he thinks I have. (I could always just glamour him into going along with it. But I hate glamouring him and Jackson or anyone else I love for that matter.)

"Let's hope the rest of the day isn't as eventful," I declared, climbing back in Sookie's car. As soon as I did so, she pinched my arm before smacking me upside the head. "Ow! Hey, what was that for?!"

"Payback," she said smugly, pulling back onto the road.

* * *

_Thank you **Noctornal Rose** and **Pixiecropse** for reviewing! And to everyone who's continuing to read this despite my brief hiatus. :)_

_~ Lynn  
_


	19. The Dangers of Shopping

The rest of the drive to the mall was rather uneventful. Jackson didn't pop up out of nowhere threatening to lock me in his basement or something. (Technically he doesn't have a basement any more. He lives in a trailer. A nice trailer. But not a trailer with a basement.) It was back to being just a normal girls' day out. With the added little spike of revenge on the boys.

"I still can't believe that you and Eric are actually going out on a date," I mused, thumbing through a rack of shirts. "That man has been trying since before I went all missing and shit."

"I'm still not entirely sure that he's sincere," Sookie admitted stubbornly. "I mean, isn't our blood supposed to be like chocolate or something to them?"

"Something," I chuckled. "But that doesn't make him like you. And Eric definitely has a soft spot for you." She raised her eyebrows at me. "Oh come on. He wouldn't have stuck his neck out for you in Dallas otherwise. And, yes, he was mostly there for Godric. But he didn't have to offer himself for all of your safeties. He could have easily taken Godric and left you, Bill, and Jason to the crazies. But he didn't. He willingly had silver put on himself." I kept the thought to myself that it probably wouldn't have saved the three of them—she just didn't need to know some things. She was happier that way.

Sookie continued to quietly look through the shirts. "Do you really think so?"

"Yes, yes I do. But," I declared as I picked out a shirt, "I also believe that this shirt would look amazing on you." As she gave me a doubtful look, she obediently went into the fitting rooms. I watched her retreating form for a few moments before turning around. A startled gasp escaped my lips as I ran into someone. "Oh, I'm sorry! I wasn't watching where I was going."

"That was partially on purpose," Bahari grinned down at me. I almost didn't recognized him in human clothes.

"Bahari?"

He frowned. "What? You aren't happy to see me?"

"No—I mean, yes, I'm happy to see you. Why are you here?"

"Because you apparently have a death wish," he shrugged. "And Nahla was convinced that you being alone would end badly."

"I'm not alone."

"Sookie doesn't count."

"Excuse me?" Sookie cleared her throat, looking at Bahari expectantly. He turned a light shade of red, coughed and then shuffled nervously.

"Er, her words. Not mine."

"Smooth," I laughed.

"Look, social faux pas aside, that doesn't change the fact that you're a very high commodity right now."

"Bahari, if I was in danger, Michael would know it. And he'd get his angel ass over here before I died."

"Not if the danger was Fae." I furrowed my brows at him. That was one thing I hadn't thought of. Truth be told, I had forgotten that some faeries were still hellbent on rounding us all up like sheep. God. I can't go anywhere without someone wanting to kidnap me. Maybe I should start wearing a brown paper bag over my head.

"You're right," I relented, looking around the store. "Hey, wait, is she Fae?"

Bahari turned to where I was pointing. "What?"

I grabbed Sookie's hand and took off at a dash. "Wait, I still have the shirt!" The security sensors went off just as we ran out of the store and into the crowds in the mall.

"Aline! Sookie!" Bahari called as a security guard detained him. "No, you don't understand…"

"Aline, where are we going?" Sookie asked as I yanked her away from one of the security guards. I came to an abrupt stop as Sookie stumbled slightly in front of me. My hand yanked her arm back, knocking her off balance as my free arm knocked her feet out from under her. She was in my arms, bridal style, moments later with a surprised and disgruntled squeak.

I dashed to the exit, taking her outside into the parking lot. Her car was easily visible in the crowd. As I made a mad dash for it, I fished the keys out of her purse. Then I unlocked the car and threw her into the passenger's seat from the driver's side, sliding in after her. I started the car, peeling out of the parking lot as fast as I could. A pair of disgruntled security guards ran outside just as the mall began to fall out of sight.

"I don't think we're going to be able to go to that mall again," I observed after a few moments of silence comprised of Sookie simply staring at me, baffled by the events that had just happened. My light blue eyes flickered over to her face. She appeared to be torn between enforcing human social dignities and laughter.

"Not shopping there again is your biggest concern?" she eventually worked out, her voice slightly higher than usual with just a touch of hysteria.

"What else would it be?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe the fact that you just ditched a Faerie in the middle of a mall and made me shoplift this shirt?!"

She held up the shirt as proof, the security tag catching my eye. I glanced at it before reaching over and breaking the white plastic cord that held it in place. It fell in a dejected little pile in her lap.

"You're worse than a vampire."

"Please, werewolves invented trouble," I grinned, pulling onto the highway.

"Where are we going?"

"The mall." She stared at me before shaking her head and turning away from me, her arms firmly crossed. After a few minutes of silence, I glanced at her. A small smile graced her lips.

"At least it is a cute shirt." I broke out in a grin.

"See? It's good to keep faerie-wolves around."

"Trust me, one is more than enough. How mad do you think Godric's going to be?"

"Probably more than Alcide—but less than Bahari. Godric at least loves me and hopefully expects these sort of things. Bahari might actually get in trouble for losing me. So he'll probably be pretty pissed."

"You really aren't worried?"

"Are you?"

"No," she admitted. She chuckled. "You can probably just pick me up and run away again if there's trouble."

"Trust me, if there's any sign of trouble, Michael should appear. He's just smart enough to know that I'm pissed at him and want my space. I don't have a death wish." Actually, I wasn't entirely sure if he could do that. He hadn't really helped me out so far—and I've gotten in a lot of trouble since being put under his charge. But I wasn't about to tell Sookie that. She'd feel better if I made our situation seem all nice and cushy.

"Sometimes I think you do."

"Okay, I don't have one right now. Happy?"

"As long as they don't charge me for whatever fines they're about to give Bahari." I chuckled, wondering if faeries were even capable of paying things like that. Well, if not, he'll probably just glamour it away and destroy the tapes.

Our journey soon lapsed into a casual chatter as Sookie directed me to the nearest mall. I was under strict instructions not to cause as much of a commotion here as I had last time. Secretly, though, she liked the commotion and the fuss. I could tell. (Or she no longer had any choice in the matter but to like it since she had chosen me as a friend.) This mall was more peaceful—no faeries lurking about in the distance nor was it sunset yet so we didn't have to worry about Godric and Eric coming to get us before we had properly broken Eric's credit score. Er, before I had broken his credit score, rather. She was insistent on paying for everything herself. I was willing to settle for monetary vengeance.

We actually made out pretty well when the trip was all said and done. I had gotten several new outfits, a pair of combat boots, a few pairs of fashion boots, a new pair of flats, and a jacket for myself. But I had also begun to pick up Christmas gifts. After all, it was nearly October. Christmas would be here sooner than any of us would like to admit. The gifts, however, I put on my own personal account. Which was still active, surprisingly. Sookie had also gotten several new outfits and a new pair of shoes for Merlotte's. Always the practical one. In a way, I envy that. Practicality can shove it as far as I'm concerned most of the time.

"Food and then home?" I questioned.

"I'm starving," she grinned in agreement. We found a small sports bar and grill that looked fairly cozy about a block from the mall. The hostess seated us in a booth in the far back of the restaurant but kept giving us worried glances. Apparently we looked suspicious?

"So why do you think that hostess keeps staring at us?" I leaned forward, my eyes locking with the back of the hostess' head. Sookie tore her eyes away from the menu, looking over her shoulder casually. As if on cue, the hostess looked over and then quickly looked away at realizing she had been caught. My blonde companion frowned, a look of concentration appeared on her face as she listened telepathically. Oh duh. Why didn't I think of that? (I don't think things through enough. Though I deny it, this is why everyone worries about me.)

"I can't get a clear read," Sookie frowned. "Can you?"

I stared at the waitress, separating her brain from the busy hum of the patrons in the restaurant. She was hard to pinpoint and get a hold of—but I eventually did. "She's a werepanther," I raised my eyebrows in surprise, "and she doesn't like that I'm here. Apparently this part of town didn't take very kindly to supes coming out. She tries awfully hard to blend in." I sniffed lightly. "I can't even pick up her scent." I leaned back. "Oh well, not like we're here to out everyone, right?"

"Right," she glanced over at the hostess again. "I didn't even know that there were werepanthers."

"You'd be surprised at what actually exists," I mused. Our waiter came over, took our orders, and then left us again. He seemed rather jittery and nervous, too. What in the world? Was everyone here a supe?

"What is with the people here?"

"I'm half afraid to eat dinner," I admitted with a frown. "Who knows what they've done to it."

"Maybe we should just leave."

"No," I shook my head slowly. "We have a right to be here, too. Last time I checked America was a free country. Or at least partially free." The waiter brought our drinks to us, leaving right away. Sookie and I exchanged glances, eyebrows raised. All we wanted was some food before driving back to Shreveport. (She was insisting on actually driving me home—mostly, I suspect, to see the spectacle of the boys freaking out.)

We had been talking for about forty minutes waiting for our food, observing other tables getting theirs before us when we had clearly ordered before them. "Excuse me," Sookie said politely, trying to catch our waiter's attention. He pretended not to hear her. I growled, reaching out and snatching him by his sleeve. My eyes narrowed in annoyance.

"Look, we just want some fucking food," I hissed. "We tip well."

"You aren't welcome here," he recoiled from me. My eyes widened, traces of anger momentarily shattered. I glanced around at the faces there. Every pair of eyes were on us. Something inside me snapped. I stood, nearly knocking the table onto Sookie, who responded with a surprised squeak.

"You're refusing me service because I'm not 'human' enough for you?!" I stepped forward, causing him to stumble back into a rather large, burly man. The man stared the waiter down before giving me a harsh look. "There's more supes around you than you think," I snapped, grabbing my purse, putting a five on the table for our drinks. "Come on, Sook, we're apparently not welcome in their little shit hole."

She grabbed her purse to follow me.

"You're refusing these women service?" the burly man asked in a deep voice. The waiter frowned at him.

"She's that werewolf-faery thing," he replied as indignantly as he could manage.

"And?"

The waiter's voice went up several octaves: _"And?!"_

"You're turning her down 'cause she's a Were?"

I stared at the man in surprise, catching his scent. (I really should pay attention to my nose more often. But, dammit, I just don't think about it that much.) He was a werewolf. I wonder what pack he's part of. "She'll draw more of them in here if—"

The man's eyes narrowed dangerously. "I assure you that she won't. You won't be finding any Weres in your establishment any more." He glanced at the hostess with a hard look. "Nor any other supes, I hope." The man threw enough money down to cover his half-eaten meal. As if on cue, a few scattered sets of patrons also rose and left money on the table, filing out quietly. Sookie and I followed, a smug smirk plastered on my face.

Hey, Michael never said that I had to handle this role gracefully or humbly. Which is good. Or else I'd have to tell God to move along to the next stray faery-wolf. "Thank you for that," I addressed the man once we were outside. He lit a cigarette, taking a drag.

"Wasn't really for you," he admitted.

"No, but still. The other supes in there wouldn't have stood up like that," I stressed, eyeing everyone sincerely. He gave me a crooked grin, exhaling some smoke.

"We don't all have the balls to go on TV, girlie," he chuckled, tapping away some ashes. "But we do what we can with what we've got." I gave him an understanding smile.

"Still, thank you. You ever need anything—"

"Don't worry about it. You got your hands full. Go get somethin' to eat. Ron's place is just up the corner. Called _Up_. He's a panther. Nice guy. I recommend the roast beef and potatoes." He slipped me his business card. His name was Dave and he was a mechanic. I grinned. Dirty, messy Were men. I love it.

He gave us some directions. "Thanks, Dave."

"No problem. You girls have a good night." Sookie and I pulled onto the main road like Dave had told us to, finding _Up_ with little difficulty. It was a very casual bar—the kind where most people are wearing jeans and t-shirts while drinking beers at the bar. The atmosphere was more pleasant here. We settled into a booth before a tall, pretty redhead came over to us.

"Hi I'm Mari, what can I get ya'll?" she beamed cheerfully.

"Well, we were recommended the roast beef and potatoes," I admitted without looking at the menu.

"Dave sent you? Hang on," she took the menus back before returning with different ones. "This is our discount menu. Dave only sends people in asking for that whenever they've been kicked out of another place or just generally had some kind of hardship dealing with the establishments around here."

"Oh, no, you don't have to," Sookie began but the woman waved her off.

"We take care of our own around here. You girls just order anything you like." We both decided just to order a sandwich, fries, and a soda each. It was on our table in under fifteen minutes. I tell you, no sandwich has ever tasted better than that. Partially because we were so hungry and also because the people here were just so much nicer.

When we left, we made sure to leave a gracious tip—and silently vowing to send friends here whenever they were in the area. Dusk was beginning to fall as we began the drive back to Shreveport. "How far away are we, anyway?" I asked from the passenger's seat.

"About an hour or two," she replied. "You were driving too fast to take the exits for the closer malls."

"Oops. My bad."

"Uh huh."

I gave her a sheepish smile before turning my attention outside, watching the world pass me by. Things were changing so quickly. More quickly than I had thought they would be when Jackson initially dropped me off at Eric's doorstep. Hell. I hadn't thought that I would end up caring for Eric as much as I do. He's like that older brother that I never really wanted but I'm so grateful to have. Even if his ego is now the size of Russia. Plus his daughter is pretty awesome. I love Pam—even if she can be the second bitchiest woman I know. (Debbie proudly takes first.)

And Godric? Oh god. I never thought I would find someone else to replace Marc. No, scratch that. He's an upgrade from Marc in all of the best ways. Kind, sweet, but still with that rough edge. And he doesn't hide anything from me. I mean, we're all entitled to our secrets. But he doesn't hide anything that could cost me my life. He was even willing to meet the sun when he thought I was dead because he didn't want to live without me. You can't really ask for much more of a committed love than that.

Not to mention all of the friends I've made along the way. The faery relatives I've met—even if they do cause me more headaches than I've ever had before. And the Vampire Authority. Such a crazy year—er, three years? That time gap still kills me. But life goes on. Good or bad, it still goes on.

* * *

_Thank you **OrangePlasticGummyBear** and **Godric Fan** for reviewing! :) There should be plenty of drama next chapter when the girls go back to Eric's house. As always, thank you to everyone who continues to read/review this. I like hearing feedback. Encourages me to update more. ;)_

_Poor Bahari.  
_

_~Lynn_


	20. Oops

The sun had completely set by the time that Sookie pulled into Eric's driveway. As we had both expected, there was a small clan of vampires standing on his porch. They wore varying expressions. Godric looked rather pissed. Eric looked amused. And Pam looked disgruntled about something or other but not quite pissed. Michael, however, was merely lounging in one of the chairs on the porch.

"See? They're fine," Pam drawled as we got out of Sookie's little yellow car. "Can we get back to my problem now?"

"Where have you been?" Godric asked, spinning me around to examine me and make sure that I wasn't hurt or anything. Upon discovering that I wasn't, he seemed to get a little angrier. "Do you know how worried we were?"

"We?" Eric questioned, blond eyebrows raising. "I believe that that was just you. I am, however, slightly worried about my bank account."

"Oops," I grinned, throwing the card back to him. He caught it with ease, eyeing it curiously.

"I had forgotten about this card." That was a lie. Vampires never forget anything. But it was his way of saying that he hadn't thought that I still had it. A rather valid assumption on his part. I probably should have just chucked it when I got it from him a few years ago. But I hadn't. I'm not sure why. Though today was a pleasant reminder of the fact that I should keep more things like this for when I need them.

"You should really remember things like that." Godric frowned at me, clearly unimpressed with how carelessly I treated running away. He opened his mouth to yell at me only to be interrupted by a faint pop. A very angry Nahla appeared with Bahari, who simply looked tired. Which was rather strange for a being such as himself.

"Well, look at that," Michael mused, "I didn't even have to leave this time." Nahla shot him a dirty look.

"This is no laughing matter," she informed him stiffly. "Kaelin is rather angry with you."

"Eh, tell him to take a number," I yawned. "Eric, be a doll and help me take my things inside." He raised an eyebrow. "Jackson said-"

"He said that I was supposed to protect you from danger, not become your personal bellhop. Besides, that's Pam's job."

"Excuse me?" Pam shrieked indignantly. "You want me to lift the bags of some half-blood for the rest of my life? No offense," she tossed back at me.

"Offense taken," I assured her. "But, seriously, I bought a lot of shit. Somebody help me with these bags." Michael and Bahari ended up taking all of the bags from me and taking them inside. Godric and Nahla looked even more miffed by the entire thing.

"There are many who would settle for nothing less than your head on a silver platter, you know," Nahla warned me. I immediately thought of Salome. Something told me that she didn't want my head on a silver platter. At least not yet. She might some day but that day isn't today. Not that I'm aware of anyway.

"And there are many heads I would like on a silver platter," I shrugged. "It can't be that big of a deal. Sookie and I just wanted to go shopping."

"For the record, I wasn't given much of a choice," Sookie interjected.

"But you didn't run away."

"You would have just carried me the other direction if I tried."

I grinned at her. "Still, you didn't even try." She also grinned before shrugging at me. I then sobered slightly. "However, there were some people that were rather unreceptive to us."

"They tried to kill you?" Bahari questioned, concerned.

"No, they just refused us service," Sookie shook her head. "It was kind of cool though. All of the supes there defended Aline."

"I expected something like this," Nahla admitted. "The Fae have been rather uneasy about being exposed. What of your kind?"

The fact that she had turned to Godric and questioned him directly made all of us stare at my godmother. She shifted uncomfortably under our gazes. Godric cleared his throat before replying: "The mainstream agenda applauds us and finds it rather unfortunate that Edgington has retaliated in the manner that he did. However, the extremists feel the opposite."

"And the Weres?"

"Dave didn't seem too upset by it-neither did most of the people that stood up for us. I think they're more afraid of what the humans are thinking, honestly," I answered. "Alcide was just pissed that I was alive and he didn't know about it-again."

"You saw your brother?" Godric questioned, his face softening. I nodded.

"Did I miss something?" Pam questioned Eric.

"Alcide and Jackson still believe that Aline is dead," Michael supplied. "Or, rather, Alcide thought so until this afternoon." He paused, inclining his head lightly. "And he'll be here in about twenty minutes." At my gaze, he shook his head. "He's alone." I nodded, wondering if Jackson knew. Then I realized that that was a silly idea. If Jackson knew, he'd be in the truck with Alcide. And that twenty minutes would have been two-because Jackson would have been driving and he would have been going ninety.

Pam shook her head at me, clearly thinking that anything other than vampires made no sense whatsoever. Eric followed her with a chuckle. Though he usually found us to be senseless, he found us amusing. Pam just generally found us annoying. Sometimes that makes us more annoying. At least that's what it does for me. The rest of us followed them inside, listening to Pam prattle on in Swedish. No doubt she was attempting to understand us. (And failing, based on Eric's laughter.)

* * *

_Sorry for such a long update delay! ...And this one is rather short. But it's a start. Thanks to everyone who continues to discover/read/review/etc. despite my flighty nature when it comes to these sort of things._

_*crosses fingers* There should be more to come...I just cannot guarantee an ETA. ^.^_

_Enjoy!_

_~Lynn_


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